Several European countries headed for stricter restrictions and new lockdowns as cases surged, while South Africa identified a new variant of the coronavirus, days after Britain said it had also found a new variant of the virus boosting cases.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS * Eikon users, see COVID-19: MacroVitals https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and summary of news.
EUROPE
* France's death toll topped 60,000 and Sweden introduced its toughest measures yet in the face of soaring infections, while Switzerland headed for a second lockdown.
* Austria will go into its third lockdown after Christmas and lift it earlier for people who get tested.
* General Practitioners in Britain have been given new guidance allowing them to use Pfizer Inc's extra vaccine doses "at their discretion."
* Spain's Supreme Court ordered an investigation into the deaths of elderly nursing home residents during the pandemic as the government warned the nation was facing a possible third wave of infections.
* Russia began vaccinating its cosmonauts and staff at Star City, the Roscosmos space corporation said.
AMERICAS
* U.S. Vice President Mike Pence received his vaccine live on television, seeking to shore up public support for vaccinations as U.S. regulators were on the cusp of approving a second vaccine for emergency use.
* Mexico City and the neighboring State of Mexico are suspending nonessential activities due to a surge of infections and death that is quickly saturating hospitals.
* The COVAX alliance, which aims to secure fair access to vaccines for poor countries, said it now had agreements in place for nearly 2 billion doses.
* The U.S. Congress looked increasingly unlikely to meet a deadline to agree on $900 billion in fresh COVID-19 aid and instead may pass a third stopgap spending bill to keep the government from shutting down at midnight.
* Canada will donate COVID-19 vaccines to other countries if it receives more doses than necessary, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* India's has enough capacity to produce COVID-19 vaccines for its needs and also export to other countries that need its help, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, after the government had said it could soon start voluntary inoculations.
* In South Korea, hundreds cannot get into hospital as surging infections overload the health system, officials and media said.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* South Africa's total reported cases surpassed 900,000, just a fortnight after it reported crossing 800,000, signaling a rapid rise in infections in the country battling a second wave.
* As Israel prepares to give vaccines to its citizens, Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza are scrambling to secure their own doses.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said U.S. approval for Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine could come within hours on Friday, after President Donald Trump tweeted that the vaccine had been approved.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* Global equity benchmarks slid while oil prices rallied to near nine-month highs as investors weighed hopes for a U.S. coronavirus relief package against moves by the U.S. government to add dozens of Chinese companies to a trade blacklist. [nL1N2IY1B8][MKTS/GLOB]
* Brazil's government may consider new economic measures to address the pandemic, depending on how it evolves, Economy Minister Paulo Guedes said.
(Compiled by Devika Syamnath and Linda Pasquini; Editing by Giles Elgood and Anil D'Silva)
