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☆ Covid-19 is an unwelcome attendee at the Paris Olympic Games
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-24 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —After a handful of Australian water polo players tested positive for Covid-19 this week, questions have emerged around how the spread of the disease will be mitigated at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris. Five players on Australia’s women’s water polo team have tested positive for Covid-19 as of Wednesday. Although the world is no longer under a public health emergency due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Olympic Games come as a wave of Covid-19 infections has hit the United States. The French capital is expected to welcome about 15 million tourists while it hosts the Olympic Games. “Attending a mass gathering event increases your chances of being exposed to respiratory diseases, including whooping cough and COVID-19.

Persons: “, Lucia Mullen, ” Mullen, Anna Meares, ” Meares, “ We’re, ”, Joe Biden, Dr, Sanjay Gupta Organizations: CNN, Olympic, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, Australian Olympic, US Centers for Disease Control, Paris, CNN Health, Paralympic, WHO, French Ministry of Health, European Centre for Disease Prevention Locations: Paris, ”, France, Australian, Tokyo, United States, Europe

☆ Heat waves in Europe are getting more dangerous. Here’s what that means for travelers
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-29 | by ( Billy Stockwell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —Growing up in Texas, Mary Beth Walsh thought she was accustomed to high temperatures. Her hometown of Dallas, which is currently being blasted by unrelenting heat, frequently experiences heat waves. “I always joke around that I have such a high heat tolerance; I bring my sweatshirt with me to class in August (in the US),” she said. Hiking in high temperatures has been a common thread linking recent deaths in the country. Amer Ghazzal/ShutterstockExtreme heat is one consequence of climate change impacting tourist hot spots across Europe.

Persons: Mary Beth Walsh, “, ”, Michael Mosley, we’ve, ” Roo Clark, Stefanos Sidiropoulos, Sidiropoulos, acclimatize, Guglielmo Mangiapane, ” Eduardo Santander, ‘, Amer Ghazzal, Clark, ” Clark, Andrea Ammon, ECDC, Hilary Swift, ” Rebecca Carter, Carter Organizations: CNN, Dallas, “, ” Authorities, Tourism Council, Reuters, European Travel Commission, ETC, Santander, European Centre for Disease Prevention, Authorities, Bloomberg, Getty, World Resources Institute Locations: Texas, Athens, Europe, Greece, British, Suffolk, England, Skyros, Canada, Hellas, Italy, Rome, Perugia, Palermo, Rhodes, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, Spain’s Seville

☆ UK-Canada trade deal: UK pulls out of post-Brexit negotiations
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

London CNN —Britain is finding out just how hard it can be to negotiate free trade deals, even with close allies and friends. Goods and services have continued flowing between the two countries under the terms of the EU-Canada free trade deal. But Britain had sought to negotiate a new trade deal with Canada that would improve upon the terms of the existing agreement. A key sticking point in the negotiations has been Britain’s refusal to relax a ban on hormone-treated beef, which at the moment effectively bars Canadian farmers from selling to British consumers. We remain open to restarting talks with Canada in the future,” a UK government spokesperson said in a statement.

Persons: King Charles, Britain, ”, Mary Ng, “, David Henig, we’ll Organizations: London CNN, European Union, NATO, —, Britain, EU . Goods, EU, Canada, Centre for International Political, CNN, Reuters, National Farmers ’ Union, BBC, “ Locations: Canada, United Kingdom, Britain, Brussels, “, England, Wales, “ Canada

☆ Deepmind's new AI could help forecast extreme weather faster
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Deepmind's GraphCast AI can produce an accurate 10-day weather forecast in under a minute. The Google-owned company's AI model is the first that can outperform conventional forecasters. AdvertisementNew research has shown that an AI model developed by Google-owned Deepmind has outperformed traditional weather forecasters for the first time. The peer-reviewed study, published in the journal Science, said that Deepmind's GraphCast AI model "significantly outperformed" the conventional system for predicting the weather, which is run by the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecast. The AI model can produce an accurate 10-day forecast in under a minute and represents "a turning point in weather forecasting," according to the paper.

Persons: —, Deepmind, Pushmeet Kohli, Deepmind's, GraphCast, Lee, Matthew Chantry Organizations: Google, Service, European Centre, Financial Times

"Public media are paid for with our taxes in order to give citizens access to fair information. And that's particularly important at... election time," said Joanna Krawczyk from the German Marshall Fund, a think-tank. PiS says private media outlets such as Warner Bros' (WBD.O) TVN often distort public debate by representing foreign interests. This perceived bias in public broadcasting has exacerbated political divisions in Polish society. "When she watches TVP, he goes to the kitchen."

Persons: Kacper, TVP, Szalai, RSF, Joanna Krawczyk, KRRiT, PiS, Grzegorz Lewandowski, Donald Tusk, Alan Charlish, Gareth Jones Organizations: Telewizja Polska SA, REUTERS, Sunday Government, WARSAW, Law and Justice, Media, German Marshall Fund, European Union, Civic Coalition, Reuters, Warner Bros, TVN, European Centre for Press, Media Freedom, Thomson Locations: Warsaw, Poland, TVP, Sochaczew, Hungary, Turkey, Russia

☆ Fact Check-New COVID ‘ID-10T’ variant stems from satire site
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A new COVID-19 variant has not been named “ID-10T,” despite claims circulating online. The earliest iteration Reuters could find stems from a satire website. The earliest iteration Reuters could find stems from a now deleted satirical website, ‘Caps Lock News’ published in March 2020 (here). The ‘About’ section of the website reads: “Caps Lock News is a satirical and parody website that should only be used for entertainment purposes” (here). The screenshot stems from a now deleted satire website.

Persons: Bill Gates, Read Organizations: European Centre for Disease, Reuters

☆ Europe braces for yet another heatwave as Greek PM warns 'hard times are clearly not over yet'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Atop the Acropolis ancient hill, tourists visit the Parthenon temple during a heat wave on July 20, 2023 in Athens, Greece. The Acropolis of Athens and other archaeological sites in Greece announced reduced opening hours due to the heatwave conditions. Europe is set for another heatwave in the coming days, pushing temperatures back toward record levels as an oppressive "heat dome" expands over the southern half of the continent. Scientists say the recent spate of heat records reaffirms the increasing urgency to slash greenhouse gas emissions as quickly and as deeply as possible. A heat dome occurs when a high-pressure circulation in the atmosphere acts likes a lid or a cap, trapping hot air in place and creating vast areas of sweltering heat.

Persons: heatwaves Organizations: European Centre Locations: Athens, Greece, Europe, U.S, China, Spain, Sardinia, Sicily, Italy

☆ The mosquito era: As the world warms, these insects are thriving – and bringing disease
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

James Gathany/CDC/Handout/ReutersWhile serious mosquito-borne diseases remain rare in the US, other countries are not so lucky. While scientists are yet to assess the role climate change has played in the outbreak, Carlson said the links seem clear. But the shift of mosquito-borne diseases into regions like the US and Europe is still likely to be a shock. Scientists are working to develop tools to be able to better assess the link between mosquito-borne diseases and climate change. The path the world takes on reducing planet-heating pollution will lead to very different futures for mosquito-borne diseases, Brady said.

Persons: it’s, Edgar Su, ”, Oliver Brady, –, James Gathany, Colin Carlson, Carlson, I’m, Ernesto Benavides, Celine Gossner, ” Brady, “, Shannon LaDeau, they’ve, ” LaDeau, Jon Cherry, Gossner, Brady Organizations: CNN, US Centers for Disease Control, London School of Hygiene, Medicine, Climate Central, Georgetown University, Getty, European Centre for Disease Prevention, Carey Institute of Ecosystems Studies, Louisville Metro Department of Health, Wellness Locations: United States, Singapore, zika, West, Saharan Africa, Peru, Piura, AFP, Europe, “, Western Europe, China, Texas , Florida, Hawaii, Arizona, India, Louisville , Kentucky, Florida

There were 71 cases of the disease - which generally causes fever and muscle pain but can be more severe and even sometimes fatal - last year, mainly in France. The health agency warned at a press conference on Thursday there is an increasing risk of a number of mosquito-borne diseases in the European region, including dengue, zika, chikungunya and West Nile virus, linked to the changing climate and the spread of mosquitoes carrying the viruses. “If this continues, we can expect to see more cases and possibly deaths from diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and West Nile fever," said Andrea Ammon, ECDC director. Aedes aegypti, which spreads diseases including dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya, became established in Cyprus last year and could make further inroads, it said. While the rates of some mosquito-borne diseases in Europe have not risen dramatically in recent years or even fallen slightly, such as malaria and zika, others have seen a "striking" rise, particularly dengue, the ECDC said.

Persons: Andrea Ammon, Aedes, Jennifer Rigby, Jane Merriman Organizations: European Centre for Disease Prevention, World Health Organization, El, Thomson Locations: Europe, France, chikungunya, West, Cyprus, Peru, El Nino

☆ Opposition Turkish TV probed for 'insulting' election coverage
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Election officials count votes during the second round of the presidential election, in Diyarbakir, Turkey, May 28, 2023. President Tayyip Erdogan extended his two-decade rule in the second round of the election on Sunday. His rival, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, said it was "the most unfair election in years" but did not dispute the outcome. RTUK penalised four television stations in March for their election coverage. International rights groups and Turkish opposition parties have accused the RTUK of attempting to silence opposition media as a tool of the government.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, RTUK, Gurkan Ozturan, Burcu Karakas, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Radio, Television Supreme, Borders, Media, European Centre for Press, Toksabay, Thomson Locations: Diyarbakir, Turkey, Sertac, ANKARA, Turkish, Istanbul, Ankara

Exchange operators' shares have outperformed in the past few weeks, with traders and analysts pointing to signs of investors rotating into exchanges, partly at the expense of banks. "Exchange operators are data and technology businesses with defensive utility-like features, while banks are highly cyclical and exposed to idiosyncratic business model risks". Average daily value traded at the London Stock Exchange (LSEG) (LSEG.L) rose 12.9% month-over-month in March. "Investors tend to look at the exchanges as defensive names. "We continue to like exchange stocks."

☆ Tech-sponsored study criticises plan to exclude non-EU cloud vendors
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] 3D printed clouds and figurines are seen in front of the Google Cloud service logo in this illustration taken February 8, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationBRUSSELS, March 6 (Reuters) - A proposed European Union cloud security label that could exclude Amazon (AMZN.O), Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google, Microsoft (MSFT.O) and other non-EU cloud services providers from the bloc is discriminatory and could lead to retaliatory measures, a study commissioned by a tech lobbying group said. At issue is a provision in EU cybersecurity agency ENISA's certification scheme (EUCS) that requires cloud services providers to have their registered head office and global headquarters in the EU and to operate cloud services and store and process customer data in the 27-member bloc. "Member states should now call on the cybersecurity agency and also the European Commission to abandon politically motivated EUCS immunity requirements," he added. A ban could also trigger retaliatory measures by EU trading partners, the think tank said.

Stocks in the European Union and United Kingdom amounted to a seasonal record 685 terawatt hours (TWh) on March 1, and storage was almost 61% full, according to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE). Storage fill is at record levels and far above the 39% seasonal average for the last decade (“Aggregated gas storage inventory”, GIE, March 3). Chartbook: Europe gas stocks and pricesOn average, stocks fall to a post-winter minimum around March 30, with the low occurring at the earliest on March 16 (winter 2011/12) and at the latest on April 19 (winter 2020/21). Related columns:- Europe nears end of winter with bulging gas stocks (February 17, 2023)- Crisis over? Europe’s gas stocks at seasonal record high (January 17, 2023)- Europe's gas prices slump to moderate storage build (January 4, 2023)John Kemp is a Reuters market analyst.

The company — which has its COVID-19 vaccine as the only marketed product after 35 years in business — on Tuesday flagged significant uncertainty around its 2023 revenue, funding from the U.S. government, and pending arbitration with global vaccine alliance Gavi. Syringes with needles are seen in front of a displayed Novavax logo in this illustration taken, November 27, 2021. Novavax faces near-term risks as protein-based vaccines take longer to produce than mRNA-based competitors, Novavax CEO John Jacobs has said. "While there is the potential for a substantial booster market ... we don't expect Novavax to be a major player in the booster opportunity." As of last close, Novavax's U.S.-listed shares were down 97% from their February 2021 record high of $331.68.

The stock had dropped 26.2% to $6.83 around 8:55 ET (13:55 GMT), while its Frankfurt-listed shares slumped more than 27%. The company - whose COVID vaccine is its only marketed product after 35 years in business - on Tuesday flagged significant uncertainty around its 2023 revenue, funding from the U.S. government, and pending arbitration with global vaccine alliance Gavi. Syringes with needles are seen in front of a displayed Novavax logo in this illustration taken, November 27, 2021. Novavax faces near-term risks as protein-based vaccines take longer to produce than mRNA-based competitors, Novavax CEO John Jacobs has said. As of last close, Novavax's U.S.-listed shares are down 97% from their February 2021 record high of $331.68.

☆ Brexit slammed the UK economy. The Northern Ireland deal gives it hope
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

It delivers “long-lasting solutions” that will work for the people and businesses of Northern Ireland, she added. It also allows the UK government to determine sales tax rates for businesses in Northern Ireland and gives the Northern Ireland government emergency powers to oppose new EU rules on some goods. A boost to BritainBeyond its importance to Northern Ireland, the deal eases the uncertainty Brexit created for Britain. The new Northern Ireland deal opens the door to closer UK-EU cooperation on financial services, energy, immigration and scientific research, according to experts. “You need to address the Protocol before you do anything else,” said Anna Jerzewska, the founder of international trade consultancy Trade & Borders.

☆ EU regulator expects eventually to introduce annual COVID shots
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - The European Medicines Agency (EMA) expects COVID vaccination campaigns to be conducted once a year, similar to the approach with flu inoculation, it said on Wednesday. In Europe, there is a marked decline in new COVID cases, hospitalisations and deaths - the lowest levels observed in the European Union in the past twelve months, he said, citing data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Still, the virus continues to evolve, and an organised approach is needed to maintain the range of vaccines to confer an adequate breadth of protection to emerging variants, he said. The EMA is currently in discussions with the World Health Organization and other regulatory agencies about the criteria and process that will lead to the potential update of the vaccines in view of future vaccination campaigns, he added. Reporting by Natalie Grover in London Editing by David Goodman and Jane MerrimanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The difference with TikTok is that the app has kept out of the crosshairs of commercial interests in Europe. "The user base of TikTok is a lot bigger than a lot of people in Europe think," he said. More than half of people aged 16 to 24 in France and Germany use TikTok, according to data.ai. He is worried the platform poses "several unacceptable risks for European users," including "data access by Chinese authorities, censorship, [and] tracking of journalists." Why Europe's tone is changingLast month, ByteDance admitted to using two journalists' TikTok data to locate their physical movements, according to a widely-reported internal memo.

☆ EU recommends pre-flight testing of passengers from China, wastewater testing in airports
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

China plans to ease travel restrictions on Jan 8, despite a wave of new infections which has left Chinese hospitals and funeral houses overwhelmed. The IPCR also recommended that all passengers on flights to and from China should wear face masks, that EU governments introduce random testing of passengers arriving from China and that they test and sequence wastewater in airports with international flights and planes arriving from China. "The Member States agree to assess the situation and review the introduced measures by mid-January 2023," the IPCR said in statement. The European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC) said last week it did not currently recommend measures on travellers from China, because the variants circulating in China were already in the European Union. The ECDC also said EU citizens had relatively high vaccination levels and the potential for imported infections was low compared to daily infections in the EU, with healthcare systems currently coping.

☆ Most EU countries back COVID pre-departure testing for flights from China
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Most European Union countries favour introducing pre-departure COVID testing for travellers from China, the European Commission said on Tuesday, as Beijing plans to lift travel restrictions on its citizens despite a wave of COVID infections. The common EU approach emerged after a meeting on Tuesday of the Health Security Committee, an EU advisory body of national health experts from the EU-s 27 countries and chaired by the Commission. "The overwhelming majority of countries are in favour of pre-departure testing," a Commission spokesman said. The spokesman said all EU countries agreed they needed a coordinated approach to the changing situation in China and to deal with implications of increased travel from China to Europe after China lifts its stringent pandemic polices on Jan 8th. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said last week it did not currently recommend measures on travellers from China.

☆ EU to discuss coordinated response to China COVID situation on Wed
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 2 (Reuters) - European Union government health officials will hold talks on Wednesday on a coordinated response to the surge in COVID-19 infections in China, the Swedish EU presidency said on Monday, after December talks concluded with no decisions on the matter. At a similar meeting on Dec. 29, held online among over 100 representatives from EU governments, EU health agencies and the World Health Organisation, Italy urged the rest of the EU to follow its lead and test travellers from China for COVID, with Beijing poised to lift travel restrictions on Jan. 8. "There is a scheduled Integrated Political Crisis Response meeting on Wednesday, January 4, for an update of the COVID-19 situation in China and to discuss possible EU measures to be taken in a coordinated way," a spokeswoman for the Swedish presidency of the EU said. Kyriakides said the bloc should be "very vigilant" as reliable epidemiological and testing data for China were scarce, advising EU health ministers to assess their current practices on genomic sequencing of the coronavirus "as an immediate step". The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said last week it did not currently recommend measures on travellers from China.

☆ Pandemic curbs linked to early start to Europe's winter flu season
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Natalie Grover | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

This winter, health officials have warned of what has been dubbed a tripledemic of influenza, RSV and continued COVID-19 cases, adding to the pressure on over-burdened health services. In Wales, for instance, there were 111.6 confirmed RSV cases per 100,000 in children aged under five in the week ending Nov. 27. In the week ended Dec 18, European cases rose 7% over the week prior, according to ECDC figures. But scientists are concerned that social interaction during the festive season could lead to further increases in respiratory infections, especially as people meet vulnerable elderly relatives. As an added complication, viral respiratory infections can predispose patients to bacterial infections, just when some common antibiotics that can treat them are in short supply in Europe.

☆ EU urges more checks for COVID variants given surge in China
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Philip Blenkinsop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The commissioner's letter, dated Dec. 29, followed an online meeting of over 100 representatives from EU members, EU health agencies and the World Health Organisation to discuss how to deal with the outbreak in China. Italy has urged the rest of the European Union to follow its lead and test travellers from China, but most EU members have said they saw no need to do so. Kyriakides said some EU members had proposed measures such as the random testing of travellers. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control says it does not currently recommend measures on travellers from China. It said the variants circulating in China were already in the European Union, EU citizens had relatively high vaccination levels and the potential imported infections were low compared to the number of daily infections in the EU, with health care systems currently coping.

LONDON, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Europe’s gas inventories remain comfortable despite much colder-than-normal temperatures across the northern part of the region which have boosted heating demand significantly since the start of December. Inventories in the European Union and United Kingdom (EU28) totalled 987 terawatt-hours (TWh) on December 12, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe (“Aggregated gas storage inventory”, GIE, December 14). Chartbook: Europe gas inventoriesExceptionally high prices coupled with conservation measures enacted following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have significantly changed consumption patterns. Related columns:- Europe on course to end winter with plenty of gas (Reuters, Nov. 28)- Europe’s gas storage peaks after record refill season (Reuters, Nov. 18)- Europe’s gas prices retreat as storage almost full (Reuters, Oct. 13)- Mission accomplished? Europe fills gas storage ahead of schedule (Reuters, Oct. 4)John Kemp is a Reuters market analyst.

☆ The U.S. wants the EU to be strict with China. But Europe can't afford it
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The United States has stepped up its heavy rhetoric against China, and wants Europe to follow suit. Reports suggested that American officials had told European counterparts to consider using export control restrictions on China. "While the U.S. is trying to pull the EU into its direction to distance itself from China, the EU is keen to maintain economic ties to China. This comes at a time when the relationship between the EU and U.S. is turning a little sour. The EU said this challenges international trade rules and is a threat to European companies.

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