World Coronavirus Dispatch: US says two in China stole vaccine data

Pfizer gets $1.95 bn to produce vaccine by year end, Schindler to cut 2,000 jobs, China's millennials drink more milk for immunity and other pandemic-related news across the globe

The United States has accused two suspects in China for stealing coronavirus research data. According to the Justice Department, the duo targeted companies working on vaccines as part of a broader cybertheft campaign to enrich themselves and aid the Chinese government. The accusations also came days after the US and allied countries accused Russia of trying to steal information on vaccine development. Read more here

Let’s look at the global statistics:


Total Confirmed Cases: 15,511,157

Change Over Yesterday: 271,352


Total Deaths: 633,396


Total Recovered: 8,813,886

Nations hit with most cases: US (4,038,748), Brazil (2,287,475), India (1,288,108), Russia (793,720) and South Africa (408,052)

Source: Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center

In US, about 30 million workers claim jobless benefits: On Thursday, US’s Labor Department reported that the total number of people claiming unemployment insurance for the week ending July 4 equalled 31.8 million. The actual figure is closer to 30 million, roughly one out of every five workers. Read more here

Pfizer gets $1.95 billion to Produce coronavirus vaccine by Year’s end: The Trump administration on Wednesday announced a nearly $2 billion contract with Pfizer and a German biotechnology company for 100 million doses by December. This is part of Warp Speed project, through which the US has put money into more than a half dozen efforts. Read more here

China’s millennials drink more milk to boost immune system: China is pushing people to drink more milk to get more protein, and boost the body’s immune system. Parents “should prepare enough milk and eggs every morning for your children…no congee should be allowed as breakfast,” said Zhang Wenhong, a renowned doctor. The comment triggered a debate on social media about the need to boost immunity. Read more here

Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug may fight severe Covid-19: French study involving 22 very ill Covid patients reports all treated with rheumatoid arthritis drug anakinra “improved clinically with no deaths, significant decreases in oxygen requirements, and more days without invasive mechanical ventilation,” according to researchers reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Read more here

EU sees Covid recovery fund payment in second half of 2021: Payments of the massive coronavirus stimulus approved by EU will start in the second half of next year economy commissioner, Paolo Gentiloni, said. He said that the bloc would have to approve new resources, such as the digital tax and the CO2 tax, to repay the common debt between 2026 and 2056. Read more here

Schindler to cut 2,000 jobs as profits fall: Swiss elevator and escalator maker Schindler on Friday announced 2,000 job cuts over two years after first-half profit fell more than a quarter, as the Covid-19 pandemic slammed the brakes on projects and a recovery remains years away. Read more here

UK retail sales jump 14 per cent in June as stores reopen: Sales in England, Scotland and Wales climbed by 13.9 per cent in June from the previous month, according to data released on Friday by the Office for National Statistics. The figure was much higher than the 8 per cent increase expected by economists polled by Reuters. Read more here

Specials

Long read:

How Taiwan’s Digital Minister hacked the pandemic

In February, 35-year-old Howard Wu, put together a website using Google Maps to coordinate the crowdsourced information pouring in from the messaging app. Convenience stores stocking masks showed up in green. Out-of-stock stores turned red. Soon, Audrey Tang, the Taiwan government’s digital minister, pounced on the map. For Tang, the significance of the mask map portal was its function as a space for other to participate in. She hearkened back to first principles: The portal was an example of her “Daoist approach” to political and social action. Read more here

Meet 5 dads who upped their TikTok game amid Coronavirus: 

Even in the midst of a pandemic, it seems as though dads can be counted on to keep their kids laughing with stereotypical dad hijinks ranging from dancing to Ariana Grande to impersonating a dinosaur. As one dad who TIME spoke to put it: “I love to make the kids laugh. I’d pretty much do anything to make them laugh. It’s like jet fuel.” Read more here

Interactive

See the full charts and read our analysis of where new Covid-19 cases are rising and falling here.