World News in Brief: December 8

The World Bank said on Tuesday (December 8) that it has further downgraded its GDP forecast for the Philippines to negative 8.1 percent this year, citing the "multiple shocks" that buffeted the Southeast Asian country. The Philippine government last week projected the GDP to contract by 8.5 percent to 9.5 percent this year following the prolonged COVID-19 lockdown in various regions in the country.

A child wearing a face mask rides a kick-scooter at a park in Yangon, Myanmar, Dec. 7, 2020. The total number of COVID-19 cases in Myanmar has increased to 100,431 as of Monday after 1,276 more cases were reported, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports. (Photo: Xinhua)
A child wearing a face mask rides a kick-scooter at a park in Yangon, Myanmar, Dec. 7, 2020. The total number of COVID-19 cases in Myanmar has increased to 100,431 as of Monday after 1,276 more cases were reported, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports. (Photo: Xinhua)

* India's COVID-19 tally reached 9,703,770 on Tuesday as 26,567 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours, said the latest data from the health ministry. According to the data, the death toll mounted to 140,958 as 385 COVID-19 patients died since Monday morning.

* Brazil's COVID-19 death toll on Monday reached 177,317 after registering 376 deaths in the last 24 hours, the health ministry said. Meanwhile, a total of 20,371 new cases were reported, bringing the national count to 6,623,911.

* Italy reported on Monday 13,679 new COVID-19 cases, bringing its tally to 1,742,557, according to the country's health authorities. The health ministry also confirmed 528 new fatalities from the virus over the past day, and Italy's total COVID-19 death toll now stands at 60,606.

* Britain will start rolling out the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech on Tuesday, while US President Donald Trump will sign an executive order to ensure Americans get priority access to procured vaccines.

* France may have to delay unwinding some restrictions next week after signs the downward trend in new cases has flattened out after shops were allowed to reopen late last month.

* Greece said it will not re-open schools, restaurants and courts until Jan. 7, while Hungary will maintain restrictions until Jan. 11.

* The US Congress will vote this week on a one-week stopgap funding bill to provide more time for lawmakers to reach a deal on COVID-19 relief and an overarching spending bill to avoid a government shutdown.

* Canada will start receiving its first doses of Pfizer Inc's vaccine before the end of December, sooner than expected, with millions more to follow in early 2021.

* Brazil's President said COVID-19 vaccines will be offered for free to all citizens, as his government entered advanced talks to buy 70 million doses from Pfizer.

* Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc said it has dosed the first participant in a mid-stage clinical trial testing its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, INO-4800.

* Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine would help the country overcome the virus but it would be a long process before it was totally defeated.

* A measure of Australian business confidence and conditions surged in November to "above average" as the second-largest state of Victoria emerged from its lengthy virus-induced lockdown and other states opened their borders to each other.

* Poland has bought over 60 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from six producers, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Tuesday.

* New Zealand's population could hit the 6-million milestone by 2050 depending on the migration and birth rates in the country, the statistics department Stats NZ said on Tuesday. The department has released projections of the population usually living in New Zealand over the period from 2020 to 2073, estimating a resident population of 5.1 million on June 30, 2020 as a base.

* Argentine authorities on Monday urged the public to continue social distancing and practicing good hygiene as a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic is looming.

* Spain's Health Ministry reported on Monday 17,681 new coronavirus cases over the weekend, taking the national tally to 1,702,328. The country's COVID-19 death toll has hit 46,646 after 394 deaths were added over the weekend, it said.

* Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on Monday announced his decision to run for reelection, less than two months before the presidential elections.

* Jordan signed agreements with several companies to purchase the COVID-19 vaccines, expecting to receive the vaccines during the first quarter of 2021, Jordanian Health Minister Nathir Obeidat said Monday. On Monday, Jordan reported 3,980 infections and 60 COVID-19 deaths, increasing the total cases to 244,069 with 3,116 deaths, according to a joint statement issued by the Prime Ministry and the Ministry of Health.

* A total of 16 militants have been confirmed dead and 11 others injured as a clash erupted in Gizab and Dehrawad districts of the southern Uruzgan province on Monday, said a statement of the Defense Ministry released on Tuesday.

Xinhua,Reuters