U.S. service sector activity at the highest level in nearly two years

The UK is trying to contain the spread of several strains of coronavirus in the country, with a new variant of South Africa emerging across the country, and sometimes without links to international travel, according to a report by Holly Ellyatt of CNBC .

British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the country had to “hit hard” on the South African strain after 105 cases were reported, with 11 of the cases unrelated to international travel. The variant known as “British strain” constitutes the majority of cases in the country.

Viruses mutate all the time and the discovery of variants is normal, but experts fear that the variants could mean a faster and deeper spread of the virus.

Since February 1, nearly 10 million people have received at least one dose of the vaccine and just under 500,000 have received a second dose, according to government figures.

—Rich Mendez

Activity in the U.S. service sector has reached its highest level in nearly two years, raising hopes that the sector affected by the pandemic may be recovering, reports Reuters.

The Institute for Supply Management’s non-manufacturing activity index rose to 58.7 in January – the highest reading since February 2019 and above the pre-pandemic level, Reuters said. Economists polled by Reuters had expected the reading to reach 56.8.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the service sector.

Spending in the service sector has drastically shifted to goods as the pandemic has forced blockades and driven people away from crowded public places like restaurants and bars, according to Reuters. Now that several pharmaceutical companies have started producing and distributing vaccines, hopes are high that the virus can be contained and the economy may soon return to some semblance of normalcy.

–Terri Cullen

Older Americans across the U.S. who are now eligible for Covid-19 vaccines are struggling to make an appointment online for the life-saving drug. Some have recruited younger relatives or friends who can quickly go through the registration process before all vacancies are filled.

However, the number of doses of Pfizer and Moderna are still limited, which triggered a demand that far exceeded the supply.

“I wanted to throw my computer out the window. It was extremely frustrating, ”said Jane Heller, a 70-year-old author and screenwriter who lives in Florida.

Angela Abruzzino, from Buffalo County, New York, said she has been trying to make appointments for her parents, who are over 80, for days. The process was a full-time effort and has so far been unsuccessful, she said.

“My parents wouldn’t be able to do this alone,” said Abruzzino.

—Noah Higgins-Dunn, Will Feuer

The biotechnology company Vaxart said that its experimental orally administered coronavirus vaccine showed promising results in an early-stage clinical trial with 35 healthy adults.

The vaccine, which is in a small pill, generated a type of T cell responsible for destroying virus-infected cells in about 75% of volunteers who received a single low or high dose, the company said, adding that the reported responses were greater . than those seen in Moderna and Pfizer vaccines.

However, neutralizing antibodies were not detected in volunteers after a single dose, said Vaxart. The researchers believe that antibodies play an important role in defending cells against the virus.

The company also said that no serious adverse events were reported in the phase one study, with generally mild side effects.

“The most exciting thing about the [phase one data] is that we can get a very, very strong T cell response, even after a dose, “Vaxart’s scientific chief, Sean Tucker, told CNBC in a telephone interview. He added that T cells are probably” underestimated “in compared to antibodies in fighting the virus.

—Berkeley Lovelace Jr.

Private companies in the United States created 174,000 new jobs in January, eliminating the 50,000 gain expected by Wall Street economists, reports Jeff Cox of CNBC.

The national labor market continues to recover from widespread coronavirus shutdowns and historic unemployment. This recovery has been difficult recently, with the resurgence of virus transmission and more contagious variants threatening communities.

—Sara Salinas

The UK’s decision to postpone the second injection of the AstraZeneca-University of Oxford coronavirus vaccine was considered an effective strategy, according to the results of a new study, which also found that an injection could stop transmission of the virus.

Researchers at the University of Oxford found that the Covid-19 vaccine was 76% effective in preventing symptomatic infection for three months after a single dose and, in fact, found that the rate of effectiveness increased with a longer interval between the first and the second doses.

The efficacy rate increased to 82.4% when there was an interval of at least 12 weeks before the second dose. When the second dose was administered less than six weeks after the first, the efficacy rate was 54.9%.

The study, not yet peer-reviewed, also found a 67% reduction in transmission after the first dose of the vaccine. The UK health secretary said on Wednesday that the study’s findings were “absolutely excellent”.

–Holly Ellyatt