KINGSTON, Jamaica — The novel coronavirus has infected more than 239.5 million people, leaving more than 4.8 million dead across 196 countries and territories.

The majority of those infected have recovered and many countries have rolled out vaccine campaigns as economies start to recover from the pandemic.

— Jamaica recorded 246 new COVID-19 cases on Friday and 31 deaths, bringing the country’s total confirmed cases to 87,232 and the death toll to 2,103.

— St Lucia’s Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre, indicating that St Lucians will have to live with the coronavirus pandemic for the ‘foreseeable future” announced an end to the existing state of emergency that had been put in place by the last administration to curb the spread of the virus that has so far killed 232 and infected 12,129 others since March last year.

— In the United States, health advisers endorsed a booster of Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine yesterday, citing growing worry that Americans who got the single-dose shot aren’t as protected as those given two-dose brands.

— The World Trade Organization yesterday said its member nations had again failed to agree to suspend intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, with some countries doubting a deal could be reached unless certain delegations make “real compromises”.

— Russia today topped 1,000 deaths over 24 hours for the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, with the country’s jab drive at a standstill and few restrictions in place.

— The US is the worst-affected country with 721,567 deaths, followed by Brazil with 602,099, India with 451,814, Mexico 283,574 and Russia 221,313.

Read the full stories:

31 COVID fatalities, 264 new virus cases

FDA panel endorses booster shot for J&J COVID-19 vaccine

WTO again fails to agree on COVID vaccine patent waiver

ARE WE FLATTENING THE CURVE?here for interactive chart* with details on Jamaica’s numbers.here for a look at the numbers globally.

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*Data mined from various sources around the world.