Denmark reported its first case of the Delta-plus variant, a mutation of the highly contagious Delta strain of Covid-19. Australian officials said they expect the number of infections in Sydney’s outbreak to increase in coming days, even as the city is now in a lockdown.
New York hospital admissions for Covid-19 dropped to the lowest statewide level since the start of the pandemic, while California reported the highest positive-test rate in more than a month.
The U.K.’s new health secretary Sajid Javid said his priority is to get the country back to normal as Britain battles to contain a fresh surge in coronavirus cases that has already delayed the lifting of pandemic regulations. Javid’s predecessor, Matt Hancock, quit after breaching social distancing guidelines he helped create.
Key Developments:
U.K.’s Javid Says Priority is to Get Country Back to Normal (7:08 a.m. NY)
The U.K.’s new health chief Sajid Javid, a former Chancellor of the Exchequer, said his top priority is ending the pandemic amid a surge in virus cases that has delayed the easing of coronavirus restrictions. Javid was named to the post Saturday by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The latest official figures show new coronavirus cases in the U.K. have climbed to their highest level since early February, with 18,270 new infections reported Saturday.
Indonesia Reports Record Daily Cases (5:56 p.m. HK)
Indonesia reported a record number of daily Covid-19 infections, with 21,342 positive cases on June 27 taking the number of infected people to more than 2.1 million. As many as 409 people died, bringing the total death count to more than 57,000.
The country innoculated 1.3 million people on June 26, according to a statement posted on the cabinet secretary’s website. More than 27 million people got their first vaccine shot and about 13 million people have the second.
Denmark Records First Case of New Delta-Plus Variant (4:46 p.m. HK)
Denmark recorded its first case of the delta-plus variant, a mutation of the strain first discovered in India, the state agency dealing with infectious diseases said in a statement. The variant was brought in by an infected passenger traveling from Portugal by plane. The passenger and the other people on board the plane are being tracked down and will have to go into isolation, the agency said.
Sweden Sees Removal of Restrictions by November (4:32 p.m. HK)
Sweden’s state epidemiologist said he expects all virus restrictions in the Nordic country will have ended by November. By then, Sweden will probably have removed its work from home recommendation and its social distance requirement, Anders Tegnell said in an interview published in the DN newspaper.
Sweden has reached a turning point and it’s now entering a more stable phase, Tegnell told the newspaper. One of the remaining threats are pockets of people who remain unvaccinated, a problem best solved by local authorities rather than the central government, he said.
Russia Cases Drop First Time in Five Days (4:30 p.m. HK)
In the past day Russia reported 20,538 new confirmed coronavirus infections, the first drop in five days, raising the total to 5.45 million, according to data from the government’s virus response center. In the past day, 599 people died of the disease, the first decline in deaths in six days. That brings the total death toll to 133,282.
Johnson & Johnson Vaccine to Arrive in India (1:30 p.m. HK)
Johnson & Johnson’s one-shot vaccine could be available in India as early as July, India Today reported, without saying where it got the information. The Association of Healthcare Providers is privately procuring the vaccine, which will be priced at $25, the publication said. The vaccine will have limited supply, however, with only a few thousands thousand available initially.
Malaysia to Extend Total Lockdown, PM Says (1:05 p.m. HK)
Malaysia is set to extend a nationwide lockdown as the number of new Covid infections still remains elevated, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said.
The movement restrictions will now stay in place until the nation’s daily caseload falls below 4,000, Muhyiddin said on Sunday, according to a tweet from the Bernama news agency. The government will announce more comprehensive assistance to all groups of society on Monday or Tuesday, he said during a visit to a vaccination center in the state of Selangor.
Australia’s Darwin Joins Sydney in Lockdown (11:30 a.m. HK)
The Australian city of Darwin joined Sydney in lockdown as the nation grapples with a widening Covid-19 outbreak that includes the highly contagious Delta strain.
Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory, was put into a snap, 48-hour lockdown starting Sunday after four new local cases were detected. Earlier, officials in the state of New South Wales warned they expect the number of infections in Sydney’s Delta-variant outbreak to increase over the next few days.
Health workers at Bondi Beach Drive-through Covid-19 Clinic in Sydney, on June 26.
Photographer: Jenny Evans/Getty Images
New Zealand Extends Wellington Curbs (10:25 a.m. HK)
New Zealand extended restrictions in the Wellington region for two days despite finding no evidence yet that an Australian tourist with Covid-19 spread the virus while visiting the city last weekend.
Gathering limits and social distancing requirements will remain in place until at least midnight on June 29, Covid Response Minister Chris Hipkins told a news conference Sunday in Wellington.
Thailand Bans Dine-In Services in Bangkok (9:15 a.m. HK)
Thailand ordered restaurants in its capital city Bangkok and nearby provinces to suspend dine-in services for a month as authorities tightened curbs to tackle the nation’s deadliest wave of Covid-19 outbreak.
The ban on dining in from Monday is in addition to the previously announced sealing of residential camps of construction workers in the Bangkok metropolitan areas and four other provinces after they became major clusters of infections.
California’s Positive-Test Rate Rises (3:00 p.m. NY)
California’s test positivity rate rose to 1.1%, the highest in more than a month as the state eases its Covid-19 restrictions.
The Golden State lifted curbs including masks and social distancing requirements for most places on June 15 in what it called its reopening. The number of cases rose 1,683 to 3.7 million, while deaths increased 55 to 62,945.
Hospitalizations are at one of the lowest levels since the start of the pandemic. Almost 41.2 million vaccinations have been administered.
NY Hospitalizations Lowest Since Pandemic Began (12:20 p.m. NY)
New York Covid-19 hospitalizations statewide have dropped to the lowest level since the start of the pandemic, with 371 reported cases.
Of the 97,020 tests reported Friday, 385 -- or 0.4% of the total -- were positive, Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a tweet.
Javid U.K. Health Minister as Hancock Resigns (2:57 p.m. NY)
Sajid Javid was named U.K. health minister, taking over a key portfolio during the pandemic shortly after his predecessor resigned.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson tapped the former chancellor of the exchequer to replace Matt Hancock. Javid resigned last year after an argument with Johnson but has been loyal in the ranks and Johnson has now rewarded him with a comeback.
U.K. Health Secretary Matt Hancock resigned Saturday after breaking the country’s coronavirus rules by kissing a senior aide in his office, the latest embarrassment to hit Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government.
Matt Hancock
Photographer: Hollie Adams/Getty Images
New Infections in U.K. Near 5-Month High (11:20 a.m. NY)
The U.K. added 18,270 cases, the most since early February, even though more than 80% of adults have had at least one vaccine dose. The spread of the delta variant is triggering the spike in infections, which have risen more than fivefold in June.
The vaccine campaign has helped limit the severity of the spread of the delta variant, with only about 1,500 people hospitalized. Another 23 deaths from Covid were reported Saturday, compared with 18 on Friday.
U.S. Hospitalizations Extend Decline (10 a.m. NY)
U.S. hospitalizations for Covid-19 declined further this week, staying at the lowest levels since the pandemic’s early days more than a year ago, according to U.S. Department of Health & Human Services data.
The nationwide five-day average fell to 16,684 on Wednesday for a little-changed occupancy rate of about 2.4%. That compares with a record 19.3% in January. Iowa, Tennessee, Oklahoma and West Virginia had the biggest one-day percentage increases in the number of Covid-19 inpatients.
Namibia Runs Out of Vaccines (9:45 a.m. NY)
Namibia, which currently has Africa’s most severe coronavirus infection rate, said it will from June 29 halt Covid-19 vaccinations except in cases where people need a second shot to complete an inoculation course. Supplies from Covax, the vaccine-sharing initiative, have run out and there are delays to deliveries of vaccines the country has bought itself.
Namibia had an infection rate of 3,404 per million people in the seven days through June 24, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, putting it ahead of neighboring Botswana and South Africa.
Germany to Quarantine Travelers from Portugal (9 a.m. NY)
Germany imposed a 14-day quarantine on travelers returning from Portugal for failing to heed Chancellor Angela Merkel’s calls to crack down on the spread of the delta variant.
The measure, which will go into force Tuesday, comes after Merkel said Portugal’s decision not to tighten rules for British tourists undermined the continent’s defense against the variant spread. Unvaccinated U.K. travelers to Malta face a two-week isolation period
“What I regret is that we have still not been able to achieve uniform behavior among member states in terms of travel restrictions,” Merkel said at a press conference in Berlin on Wednesday. “We have a situation in Portugal which possibly could have been avoided.”
— With assistance by Anurag Kotoky, and Sunil Jagtiani
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