The spread of coronavirus in Brazil could be about to slow, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday, amid reports the transmission rate has fallen below the key level and early signs of a gradual decline in the weekly totals of cases and fatalities.
The United Nations paid tribute on Wednesday to humanitarian workers now battling the COVID-19 pandemic after a year in which they found themselves under greater attack than ever before.
Britain is unlikely to follow France in ordering people to wear face coverings at work because its test and trace scheme shows most people catch COVID-19 in house-to-house transmission, health secretary Matt Hancock said on Wednesday (Aug 19).
Brazil approved on Tuesday human clinical trials for a potential COVID-19 vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson, the fourth candidate to trial in the Latin American country that has become key to the global race for a vaccine.
LATAM Airlines, South America's largest carrier, on Tuesday said it had laid off 12,600 employees since March - or almost 30% of its pre-coronavirus workforce - due to the pandemic that has upended the global travel industry. The company also reported a net loss of US$ 890 million for the second quarter.
Chile's gross domestic product (GDP) plunged 14.1% in the second quarter, the Central Bank said on Tuesday, after the coronavirus pandemic mauled economic activity with the exception of the vital mining sector. Among the worst-hit sectors were manufacturing, construction and the hotel and restaurant sector. In the first quarter, the Chilean GDP had increased slightly by 0.2%.
Indigenous protesters in Brazil agreed on Tuesday to suspend their roadblock of a key highway amid a court battle but vowed to fight on for more help against COVID-19 and an end to deforestation.
Nations that hoard possible COVID-19 vaccines while excluding others will deepen the pandemic, World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Tuesday, issuing a last-ditch call for countries to join a global vaccine pact.
Airlines and airports have asked a United Nations-led task force meeting on Monday to recommend that countries accept a negative Covid-19 test within 48 hours of travel as an alternative to quarantines that have decimated demand for travel, according to a document seen by news agency Reuters.
Cases of type 1 diabetes among children in a small UK study almost doubled during the peak of Britain's COVID-19 epidemic, suggesting a possible link between the two diseases that need more investigation, scientists said on Tuesday.