Latest on worldwide spread of the coronavirus

Reuters

New COVID-19 cases in the United States hit another record high last week, while Spain reported its biggest increase in infections since the start of the pandemic as Europe faces fresh curbs to contain a second wave of the outbreak.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

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EUROPE

* The French government will reimpose an evening curfew on Paris, and possibly the Ile-de-France region around the capital, to tackle worsening COVID-19 figures, government spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Tuesday.

* Russia reported 18,648 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, including 5,150 in Moscow, pushing the national tally to 1,673,686 since the pandemic began.

* The situation with the coronavirus in Ukraine is close to catastrophic and the nation must prepare for the worst, health minister Maksym Stepanov said on Tuesday, as the country registered a record 8,899 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours.

* International tourist arrivals to Spain fell 87% year-on-year in September, data showed on Tuesday, as coronavirus restrictions and a rapid rise in cases put many off visiting.

* Britain, which has the highest official death toll in Europe, is grappling with more than 20,000 new cases a day and scientists have warned the "worst-case" scenario of 80,000 dead could be exceeded.

* Greece will impose a two-week lockdown in northern regions and suspend flights, while Italy will tighten restrictions but is holding back from reintroducing a nationwide lockdown as infections, hospital admissions and deaths surge.

AMERICAS

* Argentina is expecting 10 million doses of Russia's main experimental COVID-19 vaccine between December and January.

* Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said he was pondering declaring a state of emergency as a preventive measure to fight the spread of the coronavirus at a time when infections are soaring.

* Panama's President Laurentino Cortizo has began self-isolating after a close coworker tested positive for the coronavirus.

ASIA-PACIFIC

* China reported 49 new COVID-19 cases for Nov. 2, up from 24 a day earlier, the national health authority reported on Tuesday.

* Days after a 17-year-old girl tested positive for COVID-19 in a remote part of western China last week, health authorities said they had tested over 4.7 million people in the region.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* The European Union has agreed to provide Mozambique with 100 million euros in coronavirus-related aid, EU Ambassador Antonio Sanchez-Benedito Gaspar said.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* A small but key UK study found that "cellular immunity" to the virus is present after six months in people who had mild or asymptomatic COVID-19, suggesting some level of protection.

* CureVac said its experimental vaccine triggered an immune response in humans, putting it on track to start mass testing this year.

ECONOMIC IMPACT

* European stock markets rose in early trading on Tuesday as investors bet on a clear win for Joe Biden as the United States votes in its most polarised presidential election in living memory. [MKTS/GLOB]

* The European Central Bank's emergency bond buying scheme is a temporary tool but Europe is still in an emergency situation and the outlook is actually darkening as the pandemic spreads, ECB policymaker Klaas Knot said on Tuesday.

* Britain's financial watchdog said it would extend payment holidays on credit cards, car finance, personal loans and pawned goods before tougher restrictions come into effect this week.

* The International Monetary Fund warned G20 economies the crisis was not over, calling on the United States, Britain and other countries to increase the fiscal spending currently planned.