Covid LIVE: Haryana schools to reopen for Classes 9-12 from July 16

Today's coronavirus numbers: Kerala reported 13,772 new infections, followed by Tamil Nadu (3,211), Andhra Pradesh (2,982) and Delhi (93). Stay tuned for corona-related news

11:32 AM

Microsoft gifts pandemic bonus to employees

Microsoft is giving all its employees a $1,500 pandemic bonus, in recognition of a challenging fiscal year that the tech giant just completed. According to The Verge which has seen an internal memo, Microsoft is gifting the bonus to all staff below corporate vice president level that started on or before March 31, 2021. Read here

 

 

 

11:27 AM

Pondy reports 126 new coronavirus cases, tally touches 118,697

Puducherry recorded 126 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours ending 10 am on Friday raising the tally to 118,697.

 

The new cases were identified at the end of examination of 6,048 samples with Puducherry region accounting for 103 cases followed by Karaikal 6 and Mahe region 17.

 

One more person died due to the deadly virus raising the toll to 1,768.

 

While 192 patients recovered and were discharged during last twenty-four hours, the overall recoveries were 1,15,234, Director of Health and Family Welfare Services S Mohan Kumar said.

11:11 AM

Taiwan receives 1.13 million Covid-19 vaccine doses from Japan

Taiwan has received a shipment of 1.13 million AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine doses donated by Japan on Thursday.

 

The vaccine doses were developed by the British-Swedish biotech company AstraZeneca and manufactured under license in Japan, Focus Taiwan reported.

 

Health Minister Chen Shih-chung, at a press briefing, thanked Japan for the donation and said inspection of the vaccine shipment will be expedited to allow for faster distribution.

 

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Tuesday that the vaccine donations were a gesture of gratitude for Taiwan's aid to Japan in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit his country in 2011.

 

11:09 AM

Hong Kong, Singapore hold travel bubble talks

Singapore and Hong Kong are still trying to revive an agreement to allow quarantine-free travel between the two Asian financial hubs, which could be used as a model to open to more parts of the world, Singapore Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said, according to a Bloomberg report.

 

11:02 AM

Andaman & Nicobar Islands report only one new Covid-19 case

The union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands reported only one new Covid-19 case in the last 24 hours, pushing the tally to 7,492, a health official said on Friday.

 

The single case was detected during contact tracing, he said.

 

The archipelago now has 13 active Covid-19 cases and all the patients are in the South Andaman district. The other two districts of the union territory North and Middle Andaman and Nicobar are now coronavirus free as they don't have any active Covid-19 case, the official said.

11:02 AM

Cases of Lambda Covid-19 variant found in Canada

Canada's chief public health officer says there are cases of the latest Covid-19 variant of interest in the country, but it's too early to know how widespread it is or what impact it could have.

 

Dr. Theresa Tam said Thursday 11 cases of the Lambda variant that was first identified in Peru last year have been reported to Health Canada to date. However, the National Institute of Public Health of Quebec said Thursday it has confirmed 27 cases already, all in March and April.

 

The Public Health Agency of Canada is monitoring Lambda to see how it spreads and how it responds to vaccines, Tam said.

10:56 AM

India does 17,90,708 tests

India conducted 17,90,708 tests for Covid-19 on Thursday taking the total cumulative tests conducted so far for detection of COVID-19 in the country to 42,70,16,605. The daily positivity rate  was recorded at 2.42 per cent, according to PTI.

 

10:55 AM

Sydney to face prolonged Covid-19 lockdown amid record 2021 cases

Australian authorities on Friday pleaded with Sydney residents to stay at home, warning a three week lockdown may be extended as they struggle to control a Covid-19 outbreak, with the city reporting its the biggest rise in local cases for the year.

 

Hundreds of extra police patrolled parts of Sydney to enforce the city's lockdown orders imposed to stamp out an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant which now has a total of more than 400 cases.

 

"New South Wales (state) is facing the biggest challenge we have faced since the pandemic started," state Premier Gladys Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney. "At the moment the numbers are not heading in the right direction." "Please do not leave your house. Do not leave your home, unless you absolutely have to," Berejiklian said.

10:39 AM

Pfizer says it is time for booster dose, US govt officials say not so fast

US drugmaker Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech have announced that they will seek regulatory authorisation for a third dose of their Covid-19 vaccine.

 

The companies, whose Covid-19 vaccine is sold under the brand name 'Comirnaty', are developing a booster shot intended to target the delta variant as concerns rise about the highly transmissible strain.

 

The companies said they believe a third dose of the mRNA vaccine has the potential to preserve the highest levels of protective efficacy against all currently known variants including Delta.

 

 

10:16 AM

PM Modi to chair high-level meeting to review augmentation & availability of oxygen across country at 11:30 am

PM Modi to chair high-level meeting to review augmentation & availability of oxygen across country at 11:30 am

10:04 AM

Gold set to rise for third week on lower yields, coronavirus woes

Gold edged higher on Friday and was set for its third straight weekly gain, as concerns over the fast-spreading Delta variant of Covid-19 and a drop in U.S. Treasury yields lifted the safe-haven metal's demand.

 

Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,805.39 per ounce, by 0312 GMT. For the week so far, it is up more than 1%.

 

US gold futures gained 0.4% to $1,806.50.

 

"The new rise in the Delta variant causing some concerns on the global growth and the data out of US started to ease off a little bit is helping gold," Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said.

 

"Real rates coming down is very supportive for gold. However, the dollar is holding up to a large degree and I think that in itself is limiting gold's move."

10:03 AM

Maharashtra's Covid-19 tally grows by 9,114, death toll by 121

Maharashtra has reported 9,114 new Covid-19 cases and 121 fatalities, which took its overall infection count to 61,31,976 and death toll to 1,24,296, a health department official said on Friday.

 

These cases and deaths were reported on Thursday.

 

As compared to Wednesday's figures of 9,558 cases and 147 fatalities, the state witnessed a decline on both counts.

 

A total of 8,815 patients were discharged from hospitals on Thursday, which pushed the state's overall recovery count to 58,89,982.

9:56 AM

Active Covid-19 cases decline to 458,727: Union Health Ministry

Active Covid-19 cases decline to 458,727: Union Health Ministry

9:32 AM

Coronavirus in India: Latest update by MoHFW

Active cases: 458,727 (Net addition: 1,977)

Deaths: 405,939 (Net increase: 911)

Cured: 29,888,284 (Net increase: 44,459)

Total cases: 30,752,950 (Net increase: 43,393)

Total vaccination: 368,991,222 (Increase over previous day: 4,023,173)

9:23 AM

World coronavirus update: UK reports another 32,551 coronavirus cases

Britain has reported another 32,551 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, bringing the total in the country to 5,022,893, according to official figures released Thursday.

 

The country's coronavirus-related death toll rose by 35 to 128,336. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test, the Xinhua news agency reported.

 

More than 45.6 million people in Britain have received the first Covid-19 vaccine jab and over 34.1 million people have received two doses, the official figures showed.

 

British Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced Thursday that fully vaccinated British residents arriving in England from amber travel list destinations will no longer have to quarantine from July 19.