Britain reactivated emergency hospitals built at the start of the pandemic and shut primary schools in London on Friday to counter the rapid spread of a much more infectious variant of the coronavirus.
With more than 50,000 new daily cases of COVID-19 for the last four days, the health service said it was preparing for an anticipated rush of patients and needed more beds.
According to Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, the dekayed Tokyo Olympics would go-ahead as scheduled in July 2021, even as the country grapples with an unexpected surge in coronavirus cases.
The games, now scheduled for July, involves over 11,000 athletes across the globe with a combined budget of $15 billion.
On Thursday, Tokyo reported more than 1,300 new cases, far exceeding the previous high of 949 cases set late last month, with nationwide infections also breaking records.
China’s relationship with the United States has reached a “new crossroads” and could get back on the right track following a period of “unprecedented difficulty”, senior diplomat Wang Yi said in official comments published on Saturday.
Relations between the world’s two biggest economies have come under increasing strain amid a series of disputes over trade, human rights and the origins of COVID-19.
He said a strategy was made to control corona keeping in view the global information, focusing on data with integration of local data in a scientific way.
While there was no direct response from Beijing, Liu Jieyi, the head of China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said in his new year's message they would stand by the "one China" principle.
Football superstar Neymar meanwhile tried to douse a firestorm of controversy over reports he organized a week-long party for 500 revelers at his mansion outside Rio.
The greenback soared to a three-year high of 102.99 against a basket of currencies in March, before ending the year at 89.96, down 6.77pc on the year and 12.65pc from its March high.