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Brazil this month will start testing an experimental vaccine against the novel coronavirus being developed by researchers at the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca Plc, Brazil's health surveillance agency Anvisa and the Federal University of Sao Paulo (Unifesp) said.

The leader of Britain's COVID-19 test and trace programme said she hoped data on the numbers of people tested and contacts traced within 24 hours would be available from next week once it had been validated.

British doctors are trialling a formulation of anti-inflammatory ibuprofen to see if it reduces respiratory failure in patients with severe symptoms of COVID-19.

Israeli cyber group Team8 said on Wednesday it launched Team8 Capital, a new venture capital fund that will focus on technology investments in data, artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity.

The Russian city of St. Petersburg, which has been hit hard by the novel coronavirus, recorded 1,552 more deaths in May than in the same month last year, official data shows.

Fiat Chrysler is piloting a project in its historic Italian home of Turin to allow its hybrid plug-in cars to automatically switch to electric-only mode when entering congested city centers.

The United Kingdom's death toll from people who tested positive for COVID-19 has risen by 359 to 39,728, the government said on Wednesday.

Airbus is looking to hold underlying jet output at 40% below pre-pandemic plans for two years, an approach which adds new pressure to cut thousands of jobs, industry sources said.

Sweden's chief epidemiologist said on Wednesday the country should have done more to combat the coronavirus but backed the broad strategy, which avoided the strict lockdowns seen in many other countries.

The United Kingdom's COVID-19 death toll surpassed 50,000 on Wednesday, according to a Reuters tally of official data sources that highlighted the country's place as one of the worst hit in the world.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has had direct control from the outset of the coronavirus crisis, his spokesman said on Wednesday, unveiling a new structure involving two committees as the country moves into another phase of its response.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire criticised U.S. threats of trade sanctions over digital service taxes, which he said clashed with its calls for G7 unity on other issues.

Tel Aviv's Bloomfield Stadium has installed a special tunnel to spray soccer players arriving for matches with a fine disinfectant mist to help prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.

Ugandan medical workers say they lack adequate supplies of personal protective equipment for tackling COVID-19 and the risk of infection is making some reluctant to treat patients.

The Kremlin defended on Wednesday plans to hold a nationwide vote next month on constitutional reforms that could allow President Vladimir Putin to extend his long rule, saying the coronavirus epidemic was expected to ease before it is held.

New official data in Spain showed on Wednesday that many more people have died than usual this year than the recorded number of coronavirus fatalities and revealed a shocking 155% spike in mortality at the epidemic's peak in early April.

Germany will outlaw the 'morphing' of passport photos, in which pictures of two people are digitally combined, making it possible to assign multiple identities to a single document.

As Thai businesses modify their work practices after coming out of lockdown, a beauty clinic in Bangkok has devised a mini face mask for clients receiving up close and personal cosmetic treatments during the era of the coronavirus.

Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:

Quarantine measures Britain plans to introduce for almost all international travellers from June 8 are vital to ensure the country's rate of COVID-19 infection does not increase again, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday.