Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

Vaccine experts said Pfizer's push for authorisation of a third dose of its COVID-19 jab is not yet backed by evidence, and the WHO said rich countries should not be ordering booster shots while other nations are yet to receive vaccines.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

EUROPE
* Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte conceded that restrictions had been lifted too soon in the Netherlands and he apologised as infections surged to their highest levels of the year.
* France will make made COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for health workers, while Greece has made vaccinations mandatory for certain workers and announced restrictions.
* Spain's two-week COVID-19 contagion rate kept rising on Monday, more than tripling in two weeks as infections have soared especially among young people.
* British Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged people to show caution when nearly all remaining restrictions are lifted in England next week.

ASIA-PACIFIC
* India's full rollout of the Sputnik V vaccine will have to be put on hold until the Russian producer provides equal quantities of its two differing doses, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd said.
* Thailand will use AstraZeneca's vaccine as a second dose for those who received Sinovac's shot as their first dose.
* Chinese drugmakers agreed to supply more than half a billion COVID-19 vaccines to global vaccine-sharing scheme COVAX.
* Opening India's tourist destinations and allowing pilgrimage travel could act as "super spreaders" of a third wave, the country's top doctor's body warned.
* Myanmar's military authorities pledged to ramp up oxygen supplies to help treat COVID-19 patients.
* South Korea's pro baseball league suspended its season after five players tested positive, and the country's toughest anti-coronavirus curbs yet took effect in Seoul to fight a record-setting outbreak.

AMERICAS
* At the request of the Supreme Court, Brazil's federal police has formally opened a probe into President Jair Bolsonaro related to alleged irregularities in the purchase of an Indian vaccine and could now question him, a source with knowledge of the matter said.
* World hunger and malnutrition levels worsened dramatically last year, with most of the increase likely due to the pandemic, according to a multi-agency United Nations report.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Nigeria's Lagos state faces a "potential third wave" of infections.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to announce a new warning on Johnson & Johnson's vaccine related to a rare autoimmune disorder, the Washington Post reported, citing four people familiar with the matter.
* Italian biotech firm ReiThera said its vaccine candidate showed a strong immune response and no major side effects in intermediate Phase II clinical trials.

ECONOMIC IMPACT
* A gauge of global stocks hit an intraday record on Monday and U.S. Treasury yields held above five-month lows touched last week as investors looked for signs on whether the Delta variant of the coronavirus could dent global growth.