Coronavirus

Chinese cities ease COVID curbs as virus keeps spreading

By Martin Quin Pollard and David Kirton BEIJING, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Some communities in Chinese cities where COVID-19 is still spreading are easing off on testing requirements and quarantine…

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China set to loosen COVID curbs after week of historic protests

BEIJING, Dec 1 (Reuters) - China is set to announce in coming days an easing of its COVID-19 quarantine protocols and a reduction in mass testing, sources told Reuters, a marked shift…

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Blank sheets of paper become symbol of defiance in China protests

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Chinese protesters have turned to blank sheets of paper to express their anger over COVID-19 restrictions in a rare, widespread outpouring of public dissent that…

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Shanghai tightens security after rare COVID protests across China

Shanghai puts up barriers around weekend protest site No sign of new protests in Beijing, Shanghai on Monday Backlash is a setback for efforts to stamp out virus News of…

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Fauci does not exclude possibility of Covid lab leak

Anthony Fauci, the retiring top official in the United States response to the Covid-19 pandemic, said Sunday he has “a completely open mind” about the origins of the respiratory virus.…

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China COVID cases hit fresh record high after weekend of protests

By Martin Quin Pollard BEIJING, Nov 28 (Reuters) - China posted another record high COVID-19 infections on Monday, after an extraordinary weekend of protests across the country over restrictive coronavirus…

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UPDATE – Clashes in Shanghai as COVID protests flare across China

SHANGHAI/BEIJING, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Hundreds of demonstrators and police clashed in Shanghai on Sunday night as protests over China's stringent COVID restrictions flared for a third day and spread to several…

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China reports third consecutive daily record for new COVID cases

BEIJING, Nov 26 (Reuters) - China reported 35,183 new COVID-19 infections on Nov. 25, of which 3,474 were symptomatic and 31,709 were asymptomatic, the National Health Commission said on Saturday, setting a…

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EU regulator warns of ‘disappointing’ vaccine booster uptake

(Reuters) - Recent uptake of COVID-19 vaccine booster doses in the European Union has been "rather disappointing," an official said, amid concerns that protection against severe cases of the disease…

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China reports new daily record COVID cases, curbs tighten across country

SHANGHAI, Nov 25 (Reuters) - China on Friday reported another record high of daily COVID-19 infections, as cities across the country enforce measures and curbs to control outbreaks. Thursday's new…

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Several Beijing districts shut schools as China COVID cases rise

Three weekend deaths in Beijing, first since May Guangzhou orders five-day lockdown of its Baiyun district China nationally reported 26,824 new local cases BEIJING, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Students in…

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China COVID cases steady as many Beijing businesses, schools shut

BEIJING, Nov 20 (Reuters) - New coronavirus case numbers held steady in China near April peaks on Sunday as many shops and restaurants in Beijing's most populous district were shut and schools…

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China reports 24,473 new COVID cases; some Beijing businesses shut

SHANGHAI, Nov 19 (Reuters) - China reported a slight decline in new COVID-19 cases on Saturday as numerous cities across the country battled outbreaks and restaurants and many other businesses…

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Beijing district urges staying home for weekend as COVID cases rise

China's new local infections reach 25,129, near April high Guanghzhou's new daily infections near 9,000 Chinese capital reports 466 new cases By Bernard Orr and Albee Zhang BEIJING, Nov 18…

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EU agency says COVID pandemic led to surge in superbug infections

(Reuters) - Infections from some antibiotic-resistant pathogens known as superbugs have more than doubled in health care facilities in Europe, an EU agency said, providing further evidence of the wider…

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UPDATED: Poland says missile that hit it was Ukrainian stray, easing concern of escalation

By Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk WARSAW, Nov 16 (Reuters) - A missile that hit Poland was probably a stray fired by Ukraine's air defences and not a Russian strike, Poland and NATO…

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Chinese cities including Beijing report record COVID cases

SHANGHAI/BEIJING, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Beijing and several other major cities in China reported record COVID-19 infections on Monday, putting authorities under more pressure to quell outbreaks quickly while also…

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China shortens quarantines as it eases some of its COVID rules

BEIJING, Nov 11 (Reuters) - China on Friday eased some of its heavy-handed COVID rules, including shortening quarantines by two days for close contacts of infected people and for inbound…

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Study finds repeat COVID is riskier than first infection

(Reuters) - The risk of death, hospitalization and serious health issues from COVID-19 jumps significantly with reinfection compared with a first bout with the virus, regardless of vaccination status, a…

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China’s COVID curbs intensify as cases surge to highest since Shanghai lockdown

BEIJING, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Chinese authorities stepped up COVID lockdowns and other curbs to contain outbreaks as the number of cases soared to its highest since millions of people…

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CanSino rolls out inhalable COVID vaccine in Tianjin, Beijing

BEIJING (Reuters) - Beijing residents can start making appointments for an inhalable COVID booster made by CanSino Biologics, media reported on Thursday, while those in Tianjin city can now get…

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China’s trade unexpectedly shrinks as COVID curbs, global slowdown jolt demand

BEIJING, Nov 7 (Reuters) - China's exports and imports unexpectedly contracted in October, the first simultaneous slump since May 2020, as a perfect storm of COVID curbs at home and global recession…

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China posts 6-month high COVID count as it sticks with strategy

BEIJING, Nov 6 (Reuters) - China on Sunday reported its highest number of new COVID-19 infections in six months, a day after health officials said they were sticking with strict coronavirus curbs, likely…

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British man who had COVID for 411 days is cured

A British man who had COVID for 411 days is thought to have had the virus longer than anybody else in the world and survived. The patient, who has a…

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China COVID cases surge to 6-month high as tensions in affected cities build

BEIJING, Nov 4 (Reuters) - China on Friday reported the highest daily count of new local COVID cases in six months as outbreaks widened, pushing policymakers to walk an even…

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China COVID cases highest since Aug, Beijing vows to stay the course

BEIJING, Nov 3 (Reuters) - China's COVID-19 cases hit their highest in two and a half months on Thursday after the health authority stuck by its strict containment policy, dampening…

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Shanghai Disney shuts over COVID, visitors unable to leave

SHANGHAI, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Shanghai's Disney Resort abruptly suspended operations on Monday to comply with COVID-19 prevention measures, with all visitors at the time of the announcement directed to…

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Chinese cities clamp down on COVID as cases rise before winter season

BEIJING, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Officials in Chinese cities and provinces across the country are pulling no punches in stamping out sporadic COVID-19 outbreaks as winter nears, quickly closing venues…

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No surge expected in global COVID cases this winter – IHME report

Oct 25 (Reuters) - Global COVID-19 infections are projected to rise slowly to about 18.7 million average daily cases by February next year from the current 16.7 million daily driven…

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China rolls out first inhalable COVID vaccine

SHANGHAI, Oct 28 (Reuters) - In what is believed to be a world first, China's commerical capital of Shanghai this week introduced a new type of COVID-19 vaccine that is…

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Chinese cities double down on curbs as COVID outbreaks widen

Guangzhou, Wuhan, Xining among cities tightening COVID measures BEIJING, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Chinese cities from Wuhan in central China to Xining in the northwest are doubling down on COVID-19…

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Global COVID cases predicted will increase in coming months, but at a slower pace

(Reuters) - Daily global COVID-19 infections are projected to rise slowly to about 18.7 million by February from the current 16.7 million average daily cases, driven by the northern hemisphere's…

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New Omicron strain likely to cause increase in COVID-19 cases, says EU health agency

A new Omicron strain that has been detected in at least five countries in the EU or EEA is likely to become dominant in the region later this year and…

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Scientists in furious row over ‘lab-made Covid’ claims

A study claiming Covid was made in a lab has ignited a furious row, as the researchers behind it have been accused of "fixing" their results by other scientists. A…

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Swiss to destroy 9 million expired Moderna COVID-19 jabs

ZURICH, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Switzerland will destroy 9 million doses of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine that have reached their expiry date, with another 5.1 million vaccine jabs set to meet…

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Chinese capital steps up COVID measures as cases quadruple

BEIJING, Oct 20 (Reuters) - China's capital, Beijing, has dialled up measures to stop COVID, strengthening public checks and locking down some residential compounds after a quadrupling of its case…

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WHO says COVID-19 is still a global health emergency

(Reuters) - The World Health Organization said that COVID-19 remains a global emergency, nearly three years after it was first declared as one. The WHO's emergency committee first made the…

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Moderna signs deal on variant-adapted COVID shots for world’s poorest

LONDON, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Moderna Inc has agreed to provide its new variant-adapted COVID-19 vaccine to the global scheme aiming to deliver shots to the world's poorest people. The…

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Long COVID at 12 months persists at 18 months, study shows

(Reuters) - Most patients with COVID-19 who have lingering symptoms at 12 months are likely to still have symptoms at 18 months, new data suggest. The findings are drawn from…

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EU’s prosecutor office opens investigation on EU’s Covid-19 vaccine purchases

POLITICO reports that the European Public Prosecutor’s Office has opened an investigation into the EU's coronavirus vaccine purchases. The EPPO's brief announcement said that "this exceptional confirmation comes after the…

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China to refine COVID measures, reiterates need for persistence

BEIJING, Oct 15 (Reuters) - China will make its COVID-19 prevention measures more scientific, accurate and effective, a spokesman for the ruling Communist Party said on Saturday, while reiterating Beijing's stance that…

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Pfizer says updated booster protects against circulating COVID variants

Oct 13 (Reuters) - Pfizer Inc and its German partner BioNTech said on Thursday that their Omicron-adapted COVID-19 vaccine booster generated a strong immune response against the currently circulating BA.5…

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Europe likely entering another COVID wave, says WHO and ECDC

(Reuters) - Another wave of COVID-19 infections may have begun in Europe as cases begin to tick up across the region, the World Health Organization and European Centre for Disease…

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Against war and other shocks, pandemic fades from world economic agenda

WASHINGTON, Oct 12 (Reuters) - The dozens of items on the public agenda of the annual meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund this week include several sessions…

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Europeans face big mental health issues despite COVID easing – survey

(Reuters) - The number of Europeans reporting "bad" or "very bad" mental health soared during the COVID-19 pandemic, even beyond the end of lockdowns, new polling showed. European Union agency…

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COVID rebound after Pfizer treatment likely due to robust immune response, study finds

(Reuters) - A rebound of COVID-19 symptoms in some patients after taking Pfizer's PFE.N antiviral Paxlovid may be related to a robust immune response rather than a weak one, U.S.…

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COVID wave looms in Europe as booster campaign makes slow start

A new COVID-19 wave appears to be brewing in Europe as cooler weather arrives, with public health experts warning that vaccine fatigue and confusion over types of available vaccines will…

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France’s 8th wave of COVID seen gaining in intensity

France has entered an eighth wave of the COVID-19 virus, as the winter season approaches, said a leading French health official. "Yes, we are in this eighth wave," said Brigitte…

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Italy drops COVID-19 face mask rule for public transport

ROME, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Italians will no longer have to wear face masks on public transport, the health ministry said late on Thursday, in the latest easing of rules…

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Prominent Chinese commentator urges COVID experts to ‘speak out’

BEIJING, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Prominent Chinese commentator Hu Xijin said on Sunday that as China ponders its COVID-19 policies, epidemic experts need to speak out and China ought to…

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COVID raises risk of long-term brain injury, large U.S. study finds

CHICAGO, (Reuters) - People who had COVID-19 are at higher risk for a host of brain injuries a year later compared with people who were never infected by the coronavirus,…

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First signs of new COVID-19 wave seen in colder countries

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are creeping up in Northern Europe where the colder and wetter weather is first being felt across the bloc. Latest data from Belgium, the U.K. and…

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Canada to drop COVID vaccine requirement to enter country on Sept 30

(Reuters) - Canada's federal government will likely drop its COVID-19 vaccine requirement for people entering Canada at the end of the month, a government source said. The source, who was…

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EU drugs agency to Biden: The pandemic is not over

The European Medicines Agency’s top scientist stated Tuesday that the pandemic is “ongoing” after U.S. President Joe Biden declared that the health crisis was over. “I cannot honestly answer why…

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Biden says ‘the pandemic is over’ even as death toll, costs mount

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden said in an interview aired on Sunday that "the pandemic is over," even though the country continues to grapple with coronavirus infections that…

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WHO ‘strongly advises against’ use of two COVID treatments

(Reuters) - Two COVID-19 antibody therapies are no longer recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), on the basis that Omicron and the variant's latest offshoots have likely rendered them…

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End of COVID pandemic is ‘in sight’ -WHO chief

The world has never been in a better position to end the COVID-19 pandemic, the head of the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, his most optimistic outlook yet on…

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