Covid news live: New York state detects five cases of Omicron variant as new US air travel rules loom | World news

At present marked the primary day of eased Covid restrictions in New Zealand’s largest metropolis of Auckland, after a gruelling 107 days in lockdown.

The visitors mild system, introduced by prime minister Jacinda Ardern in late November, ends lockdowns in favour of restrictions on the unvaccinated.

For the vaccinated, a lot of life opened up at midnight on Thursday: they might as soon as once more invite household and buddies into their properties, plan a visit to the fitness center, drink in a bar, sit in a restaurant and drink an espresso.

Our New Zealand reporter, Tess McClure, has the complete story right here.

China will cut back the time wanted for approval of travel by US enterprise executives to not more than 10 days, China’s ambassador to the US, Qin Gang, stated on Thursday.

Qin advised a dinner hosted by the US-China Enterprise Council that Beijing would additionally work to make Covid-19 testing extra handy and would enable executives to work throughout quarantine, Reuters reviews.

He repeated Beijing’s name for Washington to abolish extra tariffs imposed on Chinese language items by the administration of former President Donald Trump.

Extra every day Covid updates out of southeast and east Asia have simply dropped.

Thailand has reported one other 4,912 cases of Covid-19 and 33 deaths over the previous 24 hours.

South Korea reports one other 4,944 cases of Covid-19 and 34 deaths. The figures are a drop on Thursday’s report of greater than 5,200 every day infections as concern grows over the sharp rise in sufferers with extreme signs.

Some Covid numbers out of South Africa have simply been launched.

One other 11,535 new cases and 44 deaths have been reported.

This can be a important leap from Wednesday’s 8,561 new cases, up from 4,373 the day earlier than and a couple of,273 on Monday.

The Omicron variant has fuelled a “worrying” surge in coronavirus cases within the nation and is quickly turning into the dominant pressure, native well being officers have stated.

Omicron seems to be reinfecting individuals at 3 times the speed of earlier strains, specialists in South Africa beforehand stated.

Hawaii says it has detected a case of the Omicron variant in an unvaccinated Hawaii resident with no current travel historical past, the Related Press reviews.

Hawaii Epidemiologist Dr Sarah Kemble stated Thursday that the grownup had been contaminated with Covid-19 a yr in the past, isn’t at the moment hospitalised and had “mild-to-moderate” signs together with headache, physique aches and cough.

She wouldn’t establish the affected person different to say the particular person lives on the island of Oahu.

China has reported 96 new confirmed Covid cases for two December, up from 73 cases a day earlier, its well being authority stated on Friday.

Of the new infections, 80 have been regionally transmitted, based on an announcement by the Nationwide Well being Fee, in contrast with 53 a day earlier.

China reported 24 new asymptomatic cases, which it classifies individually from confirmed cases, in contrast with 13 a day earlier.

There have been no new deaths, leaving the dying toll at 4,636. As of 2 December, mainland China had 98,993 confirmed cases.

A number of cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant have been detected in New York, well being officers stated Thursday, together with a person who attended an anime conference in Manhattan in late November and examined constructive for the variant when he returned dwelling to Minnesota.

Along with the conventioneer, well being officers stated checks confirmed five different individuals not too long ago contaminated with Covid-19 had the variant, the Related Press reviews.

They included an individual within the metropolis’s Lengthy Island suburbs who had not too long ago travelled to South Africa, residents of Brooklyn and Queens and one other case probably linked to travel.

“No trigger for alarm. We simply need to ensure that the general public is conscious of data once we obtain it,” stated Governor Kathy Hochul.

New York Metropolis Mayor Invoice de Blasio stated the geographic unfold of the constructive checks instructed the variant was present process “group unfold” within the metropolis, and wasn’t linked to anybody occasion.

Officers within the metropolis of 8.8 million stated they anticipated it will be solely a matter of time earlier than the new variant was reported within the metropolis.

“We must always assume there may be group unfold of the variant in our metropolis,” Mayor Invoice de Blasio stated in an announcement.

As consolation over air travel returns, it’s inevitable that new variants like Omicron will unfold from nation to nation and state to state, stated professor Danielle Ompad, an epidemiologist at New York College’s College of World Public Well being.

“We shouldn’t panic, however we ought to be involved,” she stated.

Hello I’m Samantha Lock and welcome to our Friday Covid weblog.

I’ll be providing you with a rundown of the newest coronavirus updates as they occur.

Let’s begin off with the news that a number of cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant have been detected in New York, well being officers stated late Thursday, together with a person who attended an anime conference in Manhattan in late November and examined constructive for the variant when he returned dwelling to Minnesota.

Well being officers additionally stated checks confirmed five different individuals not too long ago contaminated with Covid-19 had the variant within the metropolis’s Lengthy Island suburbs as properly as Brooklyn and Queens, the Related Press reviews.

Governor Kathy Hochul stated the cases have been “no trigger for alarm” as New York Metropolis Mayor Invoice de Blasio stated the geographic unfold of the constructive checks instructed the variant was present process “group unfold” within the metropolis.

• US president Joe Biden introduced a new nationwide coronavirus battle plan.
• Scientists imagine they could have discovered the set off behind the extraordinarily uncommon blood clot problems stemming from the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine.
• South African officers say the Omicron variant is fuelling an “exponential” rise in Covid cases throughout the nation. The variant was discovered to account for three-quarters of all of the virus genomes sequenced final month.
• Indonesia tightened border curbs, prolonged quarantine and can restrict motion on strategic toll roads, in a preemptive transfer to restrict the unfold of the Omicron Covid variant.
• Sweden warned it might impose new restrictions as quickly as subsequent week.
• Germany imposes restrictions on unvaccinated and necessary Covid vaccinations from February, outgoing chancellor, Angela Merkel, introduced.
• German well being authorities reported the primary confirmed case of the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus within the capital Berlin.
• India detected two cases of the new Omicron coronavirus variant within the southern state of Karnataka.
• Finland detected its first case of the Omicron variant in an individual who had travelled from Sweden.
• Greece detected its first case of the Omicron coronavirus variant on the island of Crete.
• The European Union’s public well being company predicts the Omicron variant could possibly be chargeable for greater than half of all Covid infections in Europe inside a couple of months.
• Omicron could trigger extra Covid reinfections, South African well being specialists say.
• New US rules requiring worldwide air travellers to acquire a unfavourable Covid-19 take a look at inside at some point of travel will take impact Monday.
• UK medicine watchdog authorised new Covid remedy Xevudy.