MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd October, 2020) The death toll from the coronavirus infection in the world topped 1.134 million, over 41.5 million cases of infection were detected, and almost 28.2 million of those patients were cured, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University, which tracks and compiles data from Federal and local authorities, media and other sources.
As of 20:00 GMT Thursday, the number of cases globally is 41,524,733, including 1,134,716 fatalities.
The United States still has the highest case count in the world, with 8,386,634, including 222,766 fatalities and 3,323,354 recoveries.
Gergely Gulyas, the head of the Hungarian prime minister's office, said that the country's health authorities were considering the possibility of purchasing COVID-19 vaccines developed in Russia and China, if proven to provide necessary protection against the virus.
The preclinical phase of trials of the Ukrainian vaccine candidate against COVID-19 has been completed and it has good prospects, Ukrainian Health Minister Maksym Stepanov said.
A group of scientists at the University of Bristol has carried out independent research, which confirmed that the AstraZeneca Oxford COVID-19 vaccine is safe and provokes a strong immune response, the University of Bristol said.
Around 50 countries are in talks with Moscow on deliveries of Russia's coronavirus drug Areplivir, the CEO of pharmaceutical company Promomed, which developed the drug, told Sputnik.
The second wave of the novel coronavirus�will likely take longer than the first one, however, it will have a lower mortality rate given what has been learned so far about the disease and age profile of new cases, epidemiologists told Sputnik.
France on Thursday reported a new record rise in COVID-19 cases with 41,622 new infections registered over the past 24 hours alone, according to figures from the Sante Publique agency heading the coronavirus response in the country.
Germany has confirmed 11,287 new COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours marking the largest daily increase since the start of the outbreak, with the total count reaching 392,049, the Robert Koch Institute said.
India has decided to lift travel restrictions for visa holders and nationals abroad, but not tourists, nearly eight months after suspending entry in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Italy's central Lazio region has decided to follow several other Italian regions and impose a curfew, prompted by the resurgence in coronavirus cases, ANSA news agency reported.
Germany has put Poland and Switzerland on the list of regions with a high risk of COVID-19 contagion over the growing number of new coronavirus cases there, the German government's crisis response center said.
The Venezuelan government considers the country's epidemiological situation fit enough for reopening churches, which remained closed for more than half a year due to COVID-19 pandemic, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said.
The Japanese government is weighing up the possibility of scrapping the mandatory coronavirus-related quarantine period for international business travelers who plan to remain in the country for less than three days, the Kyodo News agency reported, citing sources in the prime minister's office.
Latin America and the Caribbean's (LAC) economy will contract by 8.1 percent this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but will then recover, growing by 3.6 percent in 2021, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said.
There is no need to impose strict restrictions and close enterprises over the coronavirus pandemic, but it is necessary to adjust support for certain sectors of the economy, in particular small and medium-sized businesses, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
Russia managed to find a balance between putting the live and health of citizens first during the coronavirus pandemic and simultaneously safeguarding the economy from its shocks, Putin said.
Putin also slammed economic sanctions imposed by the West on countries that were in dire epidemiological situation amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Russia is ready to cooperate with other states on an equal basis in order to get out of the coronavirus crisis together in the coming months, Vladimir Chizhov, the representative of Russia to the European Union, said in remarks to the Eurasian Economic Forum in Verona.
Italy is ready to reinforce its counter-coronavirus efforts again if the worsening epidemiological situation so requires, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu tasked the military with urgently deploying a hospital for coronavirus patients in South Ossetia.
