Tokyo Lifts Alert to Highest, Virus Test Progress: Virus Update

Tokyo raised the Covid-19 warning to the highest level as infections rise. A Moderna Inc. vaccine was able to produce antibodies to the coronavirus in all patients in an early trial, a report in the New England Journal of Medicine said.

Germany recorded a slight increase in the number of new coronavirus cases. U.K. levels of Covid-19 infection fell faster than previously reported in May, a study has shown. Singapore expects an increase in cases.

Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the U.S., warned young people who gamble they can go out to bars and socialize were “inadvertently” spreading the virus.

As U.S. virus cases increase, the Trump administration has ordered hospitals to send data on coronavirus patients to a central database and skip the CDC.

Key Developments:

  • Global Tracker: Cases top 13 million; deaths surpass 577,000
  • Covid vaccine front-runner is months ahead of her competition
  • Robots deployed to kill viruses at Heathrow Airport at night
  • BioVYZR hazmat suits aim to make flying safer during Covid-19
  • Covid shot derived from tobacco-like plant tested in humans
  • Alibaba helps Asia’s malls go online after virus upends retail
  • Designers envision urban living for a socially distanced era

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German Infection Rate Stays Over Key Threshold (1:57 p.m. HK)

Germany recorded a slight increase in the number of new coronavirus cases, and the infection rate climbed further above the key threshold of 1.0.

There were 276 new cases in the 24 hours through Wednesday morning, bringing the total to 200,456 according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That compares with 261 the previous day and almost 7,000 at the peak of the pandemic in late March.

Fatalities increased by four to 9,078. The daily death toll has remained below 50 since the end of May. The reproduction factor of the virus, known as R-naught, rose to 1.06 on Tuesday from 1.0 the day before, according to the latest estimatefrom the Robert Koch Institute.

U.K. Covid Infections Fell Faster Than Thought in May (1 p.m. HK)

U.K. levels of Covid-19 infection fell faster than previously reported in May, according to a study of 120,000 people that took place before the country’s lockdown was eased.

There were an average of 13 positive cases for every 100,000 people across the month, the survey by Imperial College London found, and the overall reproduction number — the number of new infections from each case — was 0.57. Estimates in the middle of the month put it between 0.7 and 1.

However, 18 to 24-year-olds were most likely to test positive, suggesting they were less likely to stick to lockdown rules. People with Asian ethnicity were also more likely to test positive, which could explain the higher death rates in this group.

Key U.K. Covid Trial to Add Drug to Tests (12:55 p.m. HK)

Researchers testing potential treatments for Covid-19 in a key U.K. trial are planning to expand its list of drugs under study in preparation for a possible second wave of the virus this winter.

The Recovery trial, which has enrolled more than 12,000 hospitalized patients, will add a monoclonal antibody treatment to the study in the fall, Peter Horby, its chief investigator, said Tuesday in an interview. Which drug makes it into the study will depend on companies’ safety data and ability to meet supply needs, he said.

South China City Finds Virus on Packaging of Ecuador Shrimp (12:50 p.m. HK)

Pingxiang city, in the southern Chinese province of Jiangxi, says the coronavirus was detected on the packaging and container of imported Ecuador shrimp sold through an e-commerce platform, according to a notice from the municipal government published Tuesday. Last Friday, China customs said it halted shrimp imports from three plants in Ecuador after some samples tested positive for the coronavirus.

Tokyo Virus Alert Raised to Highest Level (12:18 p.m. HK)

An expert panel appointed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government raised the city’s warning level for the coronavirus, warning that the virus is spreading.

The panel noted that recent cases differ from the first wave experienced earlier this year, in terms of seriousness as well the age of people infected. Tokyo kept the alert at the second-highest level last week.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike will hold a media briefing at 5 p.m. Tokyo time.

U.S. authorities notified the local government of Okinawa prefecture that 36 new coronavirus cases were confirmed at Marine Corps base Camp Hansen, bringing the total of infections found at bases in the prefecture to 136, Kyodo reports.

TV network FNN reported 48 virus cases were found at a Tokyo theater cluster.

Fauci Says Young People Are ‘Inadvertently’ Spreading Virus (10 a.m. HK)

Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the U.S., warned young people who gamble they can go out to bars and socialize thinking that even if they get sick, it won’t be a severe case of Covid-19, they are “inadvertently propagating the pandemic.”

When asked at a virtual event hosted by Georgetown University who people should trust on the novel coronavirus, Fauci said “respected medical authorities” and added that he thinks he — the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease — is one of them.

The most important thing is to “stick to the science and stick to the evidence,” he said, and not “get involved in any of the political nonsense” about masks and other issues that have become topics of debate.

China to Lift Ban on Local Group Tours (9:45 a.m. HK)

China is set to allow tour agencies and online tourism companies to run local group tours and hotel bookings across provinces, though foreign tourism is still banned. The move to allow large groups of people to travel domestically reflects the confidence of the Chinese government that it has contained the coronavirus after reporting zero new cases for nine consecutive days after the Beijing outbreak last month.

South Korea Confirms 39 More Coronavirus Cases (9:18 a.m. HK)

South Korea reported 39 more Covid-19 cases in 24 hours, raising the total tally to 13,551, according to data from Korea Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. No additional deaths were reported and the total stands at 289.

New Zealand Told Must Expect Virus Return (8:26 a.m. HK)

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is urging the nation to heed the lessons from other countries and be prepared for the risk of Covid-19 breaking through the borders and back into the community.

Officials are planning for scenarios that will include local and regional restrictions in an effort to minimize a return to the highest alert levels which represent a move to nationwide lockdown, Ardern said in a speech Wednesday in Wellington.

Singapore Expects Rise in Cases as Worker Tests End (8:07 a.m. HK)

Singapore expects an increase in Covid-19 cases in the next few days as it nears an end of tests for migrant workers residing in dormitories, the population that consists a majority of the country’s infections.

The city state sees a rise in infections as tests in the coming days will include some workers who come from dormitories with higher prevalence of Covid-19 infection, according to a statement from the ministry of health late Tuesday

Trump Officials Order Hospitals to Bypass CDC on Virus Data (7:58 a.m. HK)

The Trump administration has ordered hospitals to send data on coronavirus patients to a central database and skip the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a move some public health experts say will allow the data to be manipulated for political gain, the New York Times reports.

The order, effective Wednesday, was posted on the Department of Health and Human Services website this week and came after a tense conference call between virus response coordinator Deborah Birx and hospital officials, according to the report.

L.A. County Reports Highest Number of New Cases (6:52 a.m. HK)

Los Angeles County reported its highest number of new Covid cases and hospitalizations in a day — 4,244 cases and 2,103 people hospitalized. The county reported 73 new Covid deaths, one of the highest reported in a single day, though that may reflect a lag in the reporting of deaths over the weekend, it said in a statement.

Moderna Vaccine Trial Shows Early Promise (5:10 p.m. NY)

Moderna Inc.’s Covid-19 vaccine produced antibodies to the coronavirus in all patients tested in an initial safety trial, federal researchers said.

The neutralizing antibody levels produced were equivalent to the upper half of what’s seen in patients who get infected with the virus and recover, according to the results published Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine. The Moderna vaccine is one of the farthest along for Covid-19.

U.S. Cases Rise 1.8% (4 p.m. NY)

Coronavirus cases in the U.S. increased 1.8% as compared with the same time Monday to 3.4 million, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg News. That was slower than the average daily increase of 2% over the past week. Deaths rose 0.5% to 136,117.

  • Florida deaths rose by a record 132, or 3.1%, to 4,409. Cases rose 3.3% to 291,629, compared with an average increase of 4.6% in the previous seven days.
  • Arizona reported 4,273 new cases, the most in 11 days and a 3.5% increase that was above the prior seven-day average of 2.9%.
  • Texas set its second daily coronavirus record in four days, confirming another 10,745 cases — a 4.1% rise compared with the 4% seven-day average.

Virgin Atlantic Set for $1.25 Billion Rescue (7:13 a.m. NY)

Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. is poised to announce a rescue worth at least 1 billion pounds ($1.25 billion), after clearing the last major hurdle to the deal, according to people familiar with the matter. Negotiations with credit-card processors holding back some 200 million pounds of sales have been resolved, said the people, who asked not to be named discussing a confidential matter.

The rescue will mark a coup for billionaire founder Richard Branson, who managed to secure a private bailout after the U.K. government refused to contribute taxpayer funds when Virgin Atlantic was grounded by the coronavirus crisis.

— With assistance by Dan Reichl, Robert Langreth, David R Baker, Heather Smith, Susan Warren, and Brian Eckhouse

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