file photo/REUTERS
India reported the most COVID-19 cases of any country in the past week, its nearly half a million fresh infections pushing the global tally up by 1 percent, while overall global new deaths in the past seven days fell by 3% compared to the previous week, the World Health Organization said.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
EUROPE
* Europe can live with COVID-19 without a vaccine by managing outbreaks with localised lockdowns, the WHO's regional director said, adding he did not expect a return to full national-level restrictions.
* Tens of millions of pupils around Europe returned to school on Tuesday, with hand cleansing stations, social distancing and staggered playtime set to become the new normal.
* Russia's case tally passed the 1 million mark.
* Poland is banning from Wednesday direct flights from 44 countries including Spain, Israel and Romania.
* French companies will have around a week to adopt new, strict rules on the compulsory wearing of face masks in the workplace.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* Japan's health ministry said it planned to participate in the WHO's COVID-19 vaccine programme.
* Inmates at a high-security Australian prison lit fires smashed windows and flooded their cells with water after a lockdown resulted in a shortage of staff and services.
* Hong Kong began free testing for all its residents, as the mainland Chinese-led initiative faced skepticism from the city's medical community and public.
* Indonesia's coronavirus outbreak will likely peak this month, President Joko Widodo said, adding he was "very confident" about access to a safe and effective vaccine by the end of this year.
AMERICAS
* Senate Republicans are likely to take up their COVID-19 relief bill next week offering $500 billion in additional federal aid, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said.
* President Donald Trump's administration will restart tours of the White House on Sept. 12.
* Mexico's factories were still hurting in August from the pandemic, with production falling and firms cutting workers, though the pace of deterioration in business conditions eased for a fourth straight month.
* Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said nobody would be forced to have the vaccine against the pandemic once it is developed.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Nearly two million children returned to school in Jordan on Tuesday after a five month-absence, although authorities were forced to suspend teaching in some areas due to a spike in cases.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* AstraZeneca expanded its agreement with cell therapy firm Oxford Biomedica to mass-produce its potential COVID-19 vaccine, as it looks to scale-up supply ahead of a possible U.S. fast-track approval.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* A gauge of global stocks kicked off September on a higher note on Tuesday, as data in major economies showed manufacturing demand rebounding from coronavirus-induced lows, while the U.S. dollar remained weak.
* The eurozone economy has experienced a strong recovery in the third quarter even though the most recent data in August have been less robust, ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos said.
* Germany expects the economic devastation to be less severe than originally feared this year, but it now sees a weaker rebound next year, two sources told Reuters.
* British mortgage lending accelerated in July and consumers returned to borrowing, data from the Bank of England showed.
* Brazil extended until the end of the year emergency payments to help low-income Brazilians weather the economic fallout from the pandemic.
* South African state companies have requested billions of rand in funding from the government to help them weather the impact of the coronavirus crisis.
