J&J likely to seek EU approval for COVID-19 vaccine in February: lawmaker

U.S. firm Johnson & Johnson is likely to apply for EU approval for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate in February, a top lawmaker said on Wednesday.

Putin tells Russian officials to begin mass coronavirus vaccinations next week

President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian officials on Wednesday to open up Russia's vaccination programme against the coronavirus to more people and to begin mass inoculations starting from next week.

Factbox-Latest on worldwide spread of the coronavirus

China's Sinovac Biotech defended the safety and efficacy of its experimental coronavirus vaccine after disappointing data from Brazil. Meanwhile, Indonesia launched one of the world's biggest COVID-19 vaccination drives, aiming to inoculate 181.5 million people, using the vaccine made by Sinovac.

UK minister favours vaccinating teachers, police ahead of second dose deployment

Britain's minister in charge of COVID-19 vaccinations said once everyone in the top priority groups had been reached, he favoured moving onto groups such as teachers and the police rather than bringing forward second doses.

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:

China's Sinovac defends COVID-19 vaccine after disappointing Brazil data

China's Sinovac Biotech defended the safety and efficacy of its experimental COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, after researchers in Brazil released late-stage clinical data showing efficacy that was much lower than initially announced.

Hungary detects UK variant of coronavirus, surgeon general says

Hungary has detected a new, more easily transmissible variant of coronavirus first found in Britain, its surgeon general said on Wednesday, a week after the country lifted a ban on passenger flights from the United Kingdom.

Japan expands COVID state of emergency as people cool to holding Summer Olympics

Japan expanded a state of emergency in the Tokyo area to seven more prefectures on Wednesday amid a steady rise in COVID-19 cases as a survey by public broadcaster NHK showed most people want to cancel or postpone the already delayed Summer Olympics.

Singapore says ramping up COVID-19 vaccination drive

More than 6,000 people in Singapore have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, the health ministry said on Wednesday, with numbers expected to rise substantially in the coming weeks as the city-state ramps up its immunisation drive.

AstraZeneca says to release 2 million vaccine doses a week to UK by mid-February

AstraZeneca is scaling up releases of COVID-19 vaccine doses to the United Kingdom to the point where it expects to be providing 2 million a week by or before the middle of February, a top executive told lawmakers on Wednesday.

Thai blood donations plummet over coronavirus infection fears

Thailand's Red Cross Society appealed for people to give blood on Wednesday as donations hit a record low, with volumes collected halved amid public concern about getting infected with the coronavirus.

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