EUROPE * Denmark became the first country to exclude Johnson & Johnson's shots from its vaccination program over a potential link to a rare but serious form of blood clot. * Novavax has told the European Union it plans to begin delivering its COVID-19 vaccine to the bloc towards the end of this year, new guidance that could lead to a formal contract being signed as early as this week, an EU official told Reuters. * Germans who are fully vaccinated should be exempt from quarantine on re-entering Germany, Health Minister Jens Spahn said after the government cabinet discussed plans to lift restrictions for people who have had their shots. ASIA-PACIFIC * India pulled trainee doctors from exams to fight the world's biggest COVID-19 surge, as its vaccinations plummeted from an all-time high reached early last month. * Pfizer is in discussions with India seeking an "expedited approval pathway" for its vaccine, CEO Albert Bourla said on LinkedIn, announcing a donation of medicines worth more than $US70 million ($A90 million). * Taiwan became the latest place to ban arrivals from India, as it moves to prevent new infections, with more nations reporting cases of a variant first identified in the subcontinent. AMERICAS * US President Joe Biden is imposing new travel restrictions on India starting on Tuesday, and barring most non-US citizens from entering the United States. * New York, New Jersey and Connecticut will lift most of their coronavirus capacity restrictions on businesses beginning on May 19. * As Canada's vaccination campaign ramps up, people at higher risk of transmitting COVID-19 often lack the resources to navigate labyrinthine booking systems or the documentation that would ease their path to inoculation. MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA * Kuwaiti citizens who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 will not be able to travel abroad from May 22, the information ministry said. * Tanzania announced new anti-coronavirus measures, saying it wanted to prevent the importation of new variants. MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS * Venezuela this month will begin clinical trials of the Cuban coronavirus vaccine candidate Abdala, and plans to produce enough doses locally to vaccinate 4 million people. * Novavax said it had expanded the late-stage study testing its COVID-19 vaccine candidate to include up to 3,000 adolescents aged 12 to 17. ECONOMIC IMPACT * A gauge of global equity markets was not far from a record on Monday as investors remain bullish about the economic recovery ahead of more corporate results and US data that is expected to underline the strength of the rebound. * US manufacturing activity grew at a slower pace in April, restrained by shortages of inputs as rising vaccinations and massive fiscal stimulus unleashed pent-up demand. GLOBAL DEATHS 3,225,929 CASES 154,138,636 RECOVERED 131,468,733 Australian Associated Press
