InBrief

MELBOURNE • Several thousand people took to Australia's streets yesterday to protest against Covid-19 vaccination mandates, while smaller crowds gathered to support the measures that have elevated the country to be one of the most inoculated in the world.

Nearly 85 per cent of Australians aged 16 and above have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus as at Friday. While nationwide vaccinations are voluntary, states and territories have mandated vaccinations for many occupations and barred the unvaccinated from activities like dining out and attending concerts.

REUTERS

HONG KONG • Hong Kong has approved lowering the age of eligibility for the Covid-19 vaccine from China's Sinovac Biotech from 18 to three years old.

The city's Secretary for Food and Health said adolescents aged 12 to 17 will be accorded priority to receive the vaccine, "with a view to extending (it) to children of a younger age group at a later stage", according to a statement yesterday.

BLOOMBERG

WASHINGTON • The risk of stillbirth is about twice as high for women with Covid-19 compared with those without, and grew to about quadruple during the period that the Delta variant became dominant, a US government study said on Friday.

The analysis, carried out by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, was based on more than 1.2 million deliveries between March last year and September this year from a large US hospital database.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE