Monday, 28 December 2020

Monday morning briefing

What you need to know about the coronavirus today

Indonesia bans foreign visitors for two weeks over new coronavirus variant
International visitors will be barred from Indonesia for two weeks to try to keep out a new, potentially more contagious variant of the novel coronavirus, its foreign minister Retno Marsudi said.

Pfizer to complete supply of COVID-19 vaccines to EU by September
The distribution of an initial 200 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech across the European Union will be completed by September, a spokesman for the EU Commission said.

Swedish government to get wider shutdown powers under proposed pandemic law
The Swedish government will have the power to close shopping centers and public transport from Jan. 10 and fine people who break the rules, under a new law proposed to help halt the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Exclusive: Russia ships only first part of COVID-19 vaccine to Argentina
Russia’s first big international shipment of its coronavirus vaccine
-- 300,000 doses sent to Argentina last week -- consisted only of the first dose of the two-shot vaccine, which is easier to make than the second dose, sources told Reuters.

Piecemeal data releases threaten to undermine Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine
Fragmental releases of efficacy data for the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China’s
Sinovac could undermine confidence in the shot, as several countries prepare for mass inoculations with the vaccine.

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Top Stories

After Trump backs down on stimulus bill, Democrats aim for higher relief checks
Democrats will try to push through expanded $2,000
pandemic relief payments for Americans after President Donald Trump backed down from a fight with lawmakers that could have shut down the federal government.



Nashville blast suspect died in explosion, police say
The 63-year-old suspect in the bombing that shook Nashville on Christmas morning was killed
in the blast that destroyed his motor home and damaged more than 40 businesses, authorities said.

China jails citizen-journalist for four years over Wuhan virus reporting
A Chinese court handed a four-year jail term to a citizen-journalist who reported from the central city of Wuhan
at the peak of last year’s coronavirus outbreak, on grounds of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” her lawyer said.

Follow the money

Alibaba's $10 billion buyback plan fails to halt stock slide as regulatory concerns mount

Alibaba shares slumped 9% to their lowest since June, as the $10 billion buyback program failed to ease concerns about a regulatory crackdown on co-founder Jack Ma’s e-commerce and financial empire.

3 min read

Analysis: Tech's reign over U.S. stock market to be tested in 2021

Investors are weighing how big to go on U.S. technology stocks in the coming year, as pricier valuations, regulatory risks and a revival of the market’s beaten-down names threaten to dim their allure.

4 min read

With just days to go, Britain urges business to prepare for end of Brexit transition

Britain urged businesses to prepare for Brexit, just days before a transition period designed to smooth the UK’s departure from the European Union comes to an end.

2 min read

Big tech bets and cryptocurrencies power 2020's top U.S. funds

Outsized bets on large technology companies and emerging cryptocurrencies fueled the year’s top-performing U.S. mutual funds and exchange-traded funds as the coronavirus pandemic upended global markets, while funds that bet on oil and gas companies fell nearly 100%, according to data from fund-tracker Morningstar.

4 min read

Top Stories on Reuters TV

'Wonder Woman' nabs $36 mln at global theaters

UK tourists flee quarantine in Swiss ski resort