World Coronavirus Dispatch: Experts question WHO probe into virus origins

Johnson's single-dose can be game changer, Nasdaq wipes out 2021 gains after dovish Powell comments, Calls grow to prioritise Italy's priests for jabs and other pandemic-related news across the globe

Why Johnson & Johnson's single-dose vaccine is a game changer

Even though Johnon & Johnson's single-dose vaccine isn't as efficacious as peers such as Moderna and Pfizer, the public in general and health officials see it as superior. There are a few reasons for that. For one, the single dose comes with extra convenience--there will be no anxiety and setting reminders about another shot. And public health officials are enthusiastic about how much faster they reach a single shot to vulnerable communities that might not otherwise have access to a vaccine. Read here

Let's look at the global statistics

Global infections: 115,618,088

Global deaths: 2,569,422

Nations with most cases: US (28,827,140), India (11,173,761), Brazil (10,793,732), Russia (4,241,970), United Kingdom (4,213,764).

Source: John Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center

Some scientists question the WHO probe into pandemic’s origins

A small group of scientists are calling for an inquiry that is independent of the World Health Organization (WHO) experts, into the origins of the pandemic. While many researching the origins of the virus continue to assert that the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic almost certainly began with a leap from bats to an intermediate animal and then to humans, other theories persist and have gained new visibility with the WHO-led team of experts’ recent visit to China. Read here

Nasdaq wipes out 2021 gains after dovish Powell comments

Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday, leaving the Nasdaq down nearly 10 per cent from its February record high, after remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell disappointed investors worried about rising longer-term US bond yields even as there is a decline in new coronavirus cases. A decline of 10 per cent from its February record high would confirm the Nasdaq is in a correction. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield spiked to 1.533 per cent after Powell's comments, which did less to assuage concerns of rising yields. Read here

Calls grow to prioritise Italy's priests for Covid vaccination

Calls are growing in Italy to prioritise the vaccination of priests against Covid-19 as the death toll among members of the clergy, many of whom have assisted and comforted the sick since the beginning of the pandemic, approaches 270. Dozens of religious groups and priests have in recent weeks expressed support for a call for priests to be prioritise from the archbishops of multiple churches. A writer and journalist for the Italian Council of Bishops’ press agency has tallied the victims in his recently published book, Covid 19: Priests on the Front Line, and he put the death toll among priests at 265. Read here