People lower the body of Laeeq Ahmed, 67, who died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), into a grave during his funeral at a graveyard in New Delhi, India (Photo : REUTERS/Adnan Abidi)
Senior U.S. officials pledged sustained support for India, where vital medical supplies began to arrive from countries across the globe to help tackle the world's deadliest wave of infections.
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
* Portugal's state of emergency will end on Friday as infections drop sharply and the country prepares to further ease a strict lockdown imposed more than three months ago.
* France's main COVID-19 indicators all showed some signs of improvement on Tuesday as French President Emmanuel Macron plans to relax restrictions in the next few days.
* Some Russians who have taken COVID-19 antibody tests and found their antibodies have fallen are having third and fourth shots of the Sputnik V vaccine, but researchers in the country suggest they are unnecessary.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* China said it had offered help to South Asian countries in accessing vaccines but India did not attend a regional video-conference on the matter, although it is currently suffering the world's worst wave of the pandemic.
* Bangladesh approved the Russian Sputnik V vaccine for emergency use.
* Japan will open a mass vaccination centre in central Tokyo next month, part of the country's bid to speed up its inoculation campaign as the Olympic Games looms.
AMERICAS
* Fully vaccinated people can safely engage in outdoor activities like walking and hiking without wearing masks, but should use face-coverings in public spaces where they are required, U.S. health regulators and President Joe Biden said.
* U.S. drugmaker Merck & Co joined Gilead Sciences in lending support to India as the world's second-most populous country scrambles to address drug shortages.
* The province of Quebec reported Canada's first death of a patient from a rare blood clot condition after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine.
* The Biden administration said it was easing travel restrictions on Chinese and other international students into the United States this fall.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Around 250 tour guides from Kenyan national parks lined up in downtown Nairobi to receive the COVID-19 vaccination, as part of a government effort to revive the tourism sector.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not found a link between heart inflammation and COVID-19 vaccines, the agency's Director Rochelle Walensky said.
* The World Health Organization said it was still in discussions about the Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine and had not yet set a date to evaluate the shot's clinical data for possible emergency use listing.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
* Shares eased from record peaks on Tuesday as optimism about a global economic recovery was dented by caution before a policy decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve and earnings updates from a number of blue-chip companies. [MKTS/GLOB]
* U.S. consumer confidence jumped to a 14-month high in April as increased vaccinations against COVID-19 and additional fiscal stimulus allowed for more services businesses to reopen, boosting demand and hiring by companies.
