TOPSHOT - Samuel de Champlain Bridge is illuminated in the colors of the rainbow as a symbol of support during the novel coronavirus pandemic in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on April 19, 2020. / AFP / Sebastien St-Jean
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Gilead Sciences Inc's antiviral drug remdesivir for treating patients hospitalized with COVID-19, making it the first and only drug approved for the disease.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread of COVID-19, click here
EUROPE
* France extended curfews to around two-thirds of its population and Belgium's foreign minister was taken into intensive care with COVID-19, as the second wave of the pandemic surged across Europe.
* A surge in demand for vaccines to ward off the winter flu has led to shortages in some European cities, raising the risk of a potentially lethal "twindemic" as COVID-19 cases soar.
* Spain's health minister described a second wave sweeping the county as "out of control."
* British PM Boris Johnson said England's test and trace scheme needed improvement after a record low proportion of contacts of positive cases were reached in the latest weekly figures.
* Germany has issued travel warnings for popular ski regions in Austria, Italy and Switzerland.
* Croatia, Slovenia and Bosnia reported their biggest one-day rises in cases.
* Greece will impose a night curfew in areas most affected by COVID-19.
AMERICAS
* Several U.S. states, many of them in the Midwest, reported record single-day increases in cases, further evidence that the pandemic is accelerating anew as cooler weather takes hold in many parts of the country.
* U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said negotiators were making progress in talks with the Trump administration for another round of COVID-19 stimulus.
* Canada and the Alberta province are launching a pilot program to test eligible returning travelers for COVID-19, allowing them to leave quarantine once they receive a negative result.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party promised free doses of any future COVID-19 vaccine for the residents of eastern Bihar state if it wins local elections there, drawing accusations of playing politics with the pandemic.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Ethiopia can jail people for up to two years if they deliberately violate COVID-19 restrictions, the attorney general's office said, amid concern that citizens are becoming lax after a state of emergency was lifted.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* Moderna Inc has completed enrolling 30,000 participants in a late-stage study testing its experimental coronavirus vaccine.
* AstraZeneca's Oxford COVID-19 vaccine accurately follows the genetic instructions programmed into it by its developers to successfully provoke a strong immune response, according to a detailed analysis carried out by independent UK scientists.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, but remained very high as the labor market recovery shows signs of strain.
* Europe's biggest economy could grow next year if Germany avoids a second lockdown, Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said.
* American Airlines and Southwest Airlines signaled that they would continue to hemorrhage cash into next year.
