World Coronavirus Dispatch: Drop in population seen as fertility rates fall

Rumours spread of banks closing down in China, Tokyo on high alert, Covid vaccine candidates start human trials and other pandemic-related news across the globe

The fertility rate - the average number of children a woman gives birth to - is falling globally. If the number falls below approximately 2.1, then the size of the population starts to fall. Twenty three nations, including Spain and Japan, are expected to see their populations halve by 2100, according to a new study published in Lancet. If it continues at the current rate, researchers said, it could have a jaw-dropping impact on societies. Read more here

Let’s look at the global statistics:
 



Total Confirmed Cases: 13,323,530



Change Over Yesterday: 220,240


Total Deaths: 578,628


Total Recovered: 7,399,310

Nations hit with most cases: US (3,431,574), Brazil (1,926,824), India (936,181), Russia (738,787) and Peru (333,867)

Source: Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center 

Fauci says young people are ‘inadvertently’ spreading Covid-19: Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the US, says young people are “inadvertently propagating the pandemic” by going out to bars and socializing, thinking that even if they get sick, it won’t be a severe case of Covid-19. Read more here 

In China, rumours spread of banks closing down: Social media-fueled rumours about banks collapsing are popping up at an unprecedented frequency in China, forcing regulators and even the police to step in. After several bailouts and the first bank seizure in more than two decades last year, the coronavirus outbreak made the situation more shaky. Read more here 

Major cities go back into lockdowns: From Hong Kong to Washington state, virus restrictions once lifted are being re-imposed and the reopening of economies delayed as communities try to curb a disease resurgence before it spins out of control. Victoria in Australia and India’s Bengaluru are included in this list. Read more here

Doubts cloud China’s post-coronavirus recovery: In the first quarter of the year, growth fell by 6.8 per cent in China’s first annual decline. Economists anticipate that Thursday’s figures will highlight a mixed recovery: government support for industry will help push growth higher, but long-term pressure on consumption will continue to weigh on households and businesses. Read more here 
 

Tokyo on high alert: Tokyo confirmed 165 new infections on Wednesday, up from 143 a day earlier, as the Japanese capital raises its coronavirus alert to the highest on its four-tier scale. It now has 8,354 confirmed cases of the virus. Read more here

Specials

Try this: Hazmat suits for air travel 

Haute hazmats are just the thing to make flying feel safe again. In mid-April VYZR Technologies, a Toronto-based company specializing in personal protective gear, launched a new product called the BioVYZR via crowdfunding site Indiegogo. The $250, futuristic-looking outer layer resembles the top half of an astronaut’s uniform, with anti-fogging “windows” and a built-in hospital-grade air-purifying device. Paranoid flyers were quick to scoop it up, pre-ordering about 50,000 suits and raising $400,000 for the nascent company. The first batch is set to be delivered by the end of July. Read more here

Long read

Covid vaccine candidates start human trials
Oxford’s Covid-19 vaccine, devised by Sarah Gilbert, is in human trials. AstraZeneca has lined up agreements to produce 2 billion doses. Now the world waits. A successful vaccine likely won’t be 100 percent effective, no matter who wins the race, and success might have different definitions. Read more here 

Dalai Lama asks people to choose science over blind faith in pandemic: "We must listen to scientists and specialists. Their voices and knowledge are very important. And religious people should pay more attention to scientists rather than just pray, pray, pray," Read his Time magazine column here

Enable GingerCannot connect to Ginger Check your internet connection
or reload the browserDisable in this text fieldEditEdit in GingerEdit in Ginger×