China’s Guangzhou on Wednesday imposed COVID-19 curbs in parts of the city, joining Shenzhen in battling local flare-ups, deepening uncertainty over commerce and daily life in two of southern China’s most economically vibrant metropolises.

China imposes Covid-19 lockdowns for millions around Beijing

Deaths and infections

• Eikon users, click on COVID-19: MacroVitals for a case tracker and summary of news.

Americas

• The US government expects its supply of COVID-19 vaccines and antiviral treatments to run out over the next year and is preparing for them to be sold via the commercial market, the Department of Health and Human Services said.

• Advisers to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will meet on Thursday to vote on whether to recommend the use of two COVID-19 vaccine boosters tailored against the Omicron variant.

Europe

• Hungary must take action on changing its rule of law before it can receive any European Union recovery funds, the EU affairs chief of the Czech government, which holds the bloc’s rotating presidency, said in an interview.

Asia-pacific

• South Korea will from Saturday no longer require travellers to the country to test for COVID-19 before departure, although they will still need to take a PCR test within 24 hours of arrival.

• Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, 97, has tested positive for COVID-19 and has been hospitalised for observation, his office said.

Medical developments

• A new research institution being launched in Australia will aim to develop drugs to treat diseases caused by pathogens with the potential to cause global pandemics more quickly.

• Todos Medical said it was able to test for both COVID-19 and monkeypox from the same saliva sample.

Economic impact

• China’s factory activity extended declines in August as new COVID infections, the worst heatwaves in decades and an embattled property sector weighed on production, suggesting the economy will struggle to sustain momentum.

• While robust overseas demand and a weak yen have boosted Japanese manufacturers’ profits, supply disruptions caused by China’s strict COVID-19 lockdowns have hurt exports and output, Bank of Japan board member Junko Nakagawa said.

• India’s economy probably achieved its fastest annual expansion in a year in the April-June quarter, economists said, expecting the pace to sharply slow this quarter and in the next two as higher interest rates hit economic activity.