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The U.S. reported the lowest level of infection since the early days of the pandemic and welcomed back sports crowds to stadiums as 135,000 fans watched the Indianapolis 500. Japan is reportedly considering mandating testing or vaccinations for spectators at the Tokyo Olympics.
Two U.S. disease experts said Sunday that the world needs the cooperation of the Chinese government to trace the origins of Covid-19 and prevent future pandemic threats. The precise origins of the virus remain obscure.
Outbreaks in Africa and Asia led to new restrictions. South Africa extended a curfew and curbed gatherings. Malaysia announced a two-week nationwide lockdown to subdue a surge, and China ordered a neighborhood in the city of Guangzhou to stay at home. Singapore is due to outline a reopening plan.
Key Developments:
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South American Soccer Tournament Suspended (12:15 p.m. HK)
Argentina won’t host the Copa America after the organizers of South America’s largest soccer tournament suspended the event in the country in view of “present circumstances.” Other nations have indicated interest in being hosts, Conmebol said in a tweet. With close to 3.8 million cases, Argentina is among the 10 most-infected countries. The tournament was due to begin June 13.
Hong Kong, Australia Vaccine Incentives (11 a.m. HK)
Hong Kong’s Covid vaccine bookings surged after developers offered a $1.4 million apartment as a prize in a draw for vaccinated residents. In Australia, Qantas Airways Ltd. is offering unlimited flights for a year among a pool of prizes for people who’ve had shots. That’s the biggest incentive yet from an Australian firm in a bid to accelerate the country’s sluggish vaccination rollout.
Elsewhere in Hong Kong, officials are allowing vaccinated directors and senior executives of major listed companies to travel globally more easily -- a significant relaxation of onerous border curbs that’s drawing backlash from the wider population for being elitist.
Australian State Adds More Cases (10:42 a.m. HK)
Australia’s Victoria state recorded six new local Covid-19 infections Monday in addition to the five reported earlier, taking active cases to at least 54.
“I want to be very clear with everyone, this outbreak may well get worse before it gets better,” Acting State Premier James Merlino told reporters in Melbourne. “In the past 24 hours we identified many more points of concern.”
The nation’s second-most populous state has been under stay-at-home orders since May 27 and will remain so until at least June 3, when officials will assess if the latest outbreak is under control.
China’s Guangzhou Requires Covid Test to Leave City (8:31 a.m. HK)
A negative nucleic acid test within the previous three days is mandatory for people leaving the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou by plane, train or bus, according to an official statement. One neighborhood in the metropolis is in lockdown, with state television reporting infections in the city are of the variant first detected in India.
China reported 20 confirmed local Covid-19 cases and three asymptomatic cases in Guangdong province on May 30.
Covid-19 testing at Yuexiu District in Guangzhou on May 30.
Photographer: Zhou Weiwen/VCG/Getty Images
Japan Wants Olympic Spectators Tested (7:32 a.m. HK)
The Japanese government is considering requiring spectators of the Tokyo Olympics to be either tested or vaccinated, the Yomiuri newspaper reported, citing officials who weren’t identified.
WATCH: There are concerns Japan does not have enough doctors to support the Tokyo Olympics. Sophie Jackman reports.
(Source: Bloomberg)
The government’s draft plan calls for spectators to present proof of a negative result from a Covid-19 test taken within a week of the event they’re viewing. Those who present certification of vaccination would be exempt from that requirement.
Meanwhile, Japan’s medical establishment is becoming increasingly anxious about bringing together 78,000 people from 200 countries for the games. The country is struggling to keep coronavirus infections under control and speed up vaccinations.
A truck displays Covid-19 safety protocols as it drives through Shibuya crossing on May 28.
Photographer: Yuichi Yamazaki/Getty Images
U.K. Backpedals on Vaccine Passports (5:40 p.m. NY)
U.K. government officials are set to ditch potential plans to force Britons to show a Covid passport to be able to attend mass events in the country, the Telegraph reported. Boris Johnson had already ruled out using Covid passports for day-to-day activities such as visiting a supermarket or a local doctor.
Meanwhile, the U.K. is considering making vaccinations mandatory for health workers, according to Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi. “It would be incumbent on any responsible government to have the debate, to do the thinking on how we go about protecting the most vulnerable by making sure those who look after them are vaccinated,” he said in a Sky News interview.
Only a handful of Covid patients being admitted to hospital have had two vaccinations, according to head of NHS Providers Chris Hopson. Based on his conversations with health bosses in hotspot area around the country, Hopson said in a Twitter thread that those who did tended to have other serious health issues and that a significant majority being admitted were not vaccinated.
Indy 500 Draws Biggest Pandemic Crowd (3:54 p.m. NY)
The Indianapolis 500 was run in front of 135,000 fans, the largest U.S. sporting event since the start of the pandemic. Few fans at the motor race appeared to be wearing masks, though they were required by local ordinance.
The race, won for a fourth time by Brazilian driver Helio Castroneves, was at about 40% of its official 350,000 capacity, according to the Indy Star. Yearly attendance is usually about 300,000. The stands were empty at last year’s race.
Spectators cheer during the Indianapolis 500 on May 30.
Photographer: Jeff Dean/AFP/Getty Images
South Africa Tightens Restrictions (1:43 p.m. NY)
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa extended a night-time curfew and reduced the permissible size of public gatherings to contain the spread of the coronavirus after a surge in infections.
The curfew will run from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m., one hour longer than before, as the country moves to virus alert-level two, from level one. A maximum of 100 people will be allowed at indoor gatherings and 250 at outdoor events. A widely anticipated tightening of curbs on alcohol sales didn’t materialize.
“We have seen in other countries the tragic consequences of allowing the virus to spread unchecked,” Ramaphosa said in a televised address to the nation on Sunday.
U.S. Experts Call for Virus Origin Probe (12:21 p.m. NY)
The world needs the cooperation of the Chinese government to trace the origins of Covid-19 and prevent future pandemic threats, two leading U.S. disease experts said Sunday.
Information to support the theory that the SARS-CoV-2 virus may have escaped from a lab in Wuhan, China, has increased, said Scott Gottlieb, a commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration in the Trump administration who now sits on the board of Pfizer Inc.
The P4 laboratory on the campus of the Wuhan Institute of Virology on May 27.
Photographer: Hector Retamal/AFP/Getty Images
China hasn’t provided evidence to disprove that theory, while the search for signs that the virus emerged from wildlife hasn’t yielded results, he said on CBS News’s “Face the Nation.”
Not knowing how the pandemic started puts the world at risk of future outbreaks, Peter Hotez, co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, said in a separate TV appearance.
Italy Deaths at 7-Month Low (11:30 a.m. NY)
Italy reported the fewest deaths since October, a welcome sign as the country continues to relax restrictions. Deaths fell to 44 from 126 Saturday, with 2,949 cases, for a positive test rate of 1.8%. Numbers are generally lower on Sundays because of fewer tests.
On June 1, Italy is set to allow indoor dining, amid other reopenings. Earlier Sunday, health minister Roberto Speranza extended a travel ban from India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to June 21.
Malaysia Doctors May Ration Care (10:54 a.m. NY)
Malaysia’s worsening outbreak may force doctors to allot intensive care beds to patients with higher chances of recovery amid a record surge in new cases, Health Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said. The nation faces a two-week lockdown aimed at reining in an outbreak that has led to more than 2,000 deaths this year, according to data from the health ministry. The new restrictions will be in place June 1-14.
A medical worker conducts a Covid-19 test in Shah Alam, on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, on May 27.
Photographer: Mohd Rasfan/AFP/Getty Images
U.S. Cases Reach Another Low (8:20 a.m. NY)
The U.S. added slightly more than 12,000 new cases, the fewest since the early days of the pandemic last year, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg. While reporting typically slows on weekends, the number was the lowest since March 23, 2020.
U.S. daily deaths fell to 362, the fewest on a Saturday in 11 months. Deaths from Covid-19 have declined almost continually since late February as a nationwide vaccination campaign took hold.
Singapore to Detail Reopening (5:32 a.m. NY)
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will outline his plan for tackling coronavirus and reopening the economy in a speech Monday afternoon. In a post on Facebook, Lee said the government aims to accelerate testing, contact tracing, and its vaccination program, and that it wants to offer every eligible person at least their first dose by the end of August. The city-state responded to a recent outbreak with strict curbs such as moving most school-learning online.
— With assistance by Sunil Jagtiani, Qi Ding, Felix Tam, Angus Whitley, and Linus Chua
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