Virus data row: China slams US
BEIJING: China fired back on Sunday at the US over allegations from the White House that Beijing withheld some information about the coronavirus outbreak from World Health Organization investigators.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the US had “deep concerns about the way in which the early findings of the Covid-19 investigation were communicated and questions about the process used to reach them.”
China responded with a statement from its Washington embassy on Sunday, saying the US had already “gravely damaged international cooperation on Covid-19” and was now “pointing fingers at other countries who have been faithfully supporting the WHO.”
Meanwhile, CNN reported the WHO investigators had discovered that signs of the outbreak were much wider in Wuhan in December 2019 than previously thought.
The lead investigator, Peter
Ben Embarek, told CNN that the team is urgently seeking access to hundreds and thousands of blood samples from the city that China has not so far let them examine.
On Sunday, the UK affirmed its plan for schools to reopen from early next month as the nation’s vaccine programme looks set to meet its first target. The country is moving to the next phase of inoculations as it neared a target of giving vaccines to 15 million of the most vulnerable people.
New Zealand’s most populous city, Auckland, went into a snap three-day lockdown from Sunday midnight after three members of one household were diagnosed with the virus.
Japan gave formal approval to the Pfizer vaccine, in its first go-ahead for shots against the coronavirus. Japan is expected to begin inoculations this week, starting with medical professionals. The government has agreed to buy the vaccine from Pfizer for 72 million people this year.
MUMBAI: Renew Power Pvt. Ltd is planning to list its shares in the US through the fast-emerging SPAC (special purpose acquisition company) route at a valuation of almost $4 billion, two people aware of the development said.
The company, one of India’s largest renewable energy firms, is in talks to merge with RMG Acquisition owned by Nasdaqlisted SPAC Riverside Capital Management, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity. Renew Power had shelved its Indian initial public offering plan in 2019 amid market volatility. As per Securities Exchange Commission rules, while Riverside will hold up to 20% in the newly listed avatar of Renew Power, Goldman Sachs along with CPPIB, ADIA and the company’s founder-cum-chairman Sumant Sinha will hold the rest 80%, one of the two people cited above said.
“The due diligence process for the listing of Renew Power through SPAC has already begun and once completed, it will mark the largest ever listing of an Indian company in the US through SPAC route,” this person said. “In the case of Renew Power, SPAC Riverside is expected to put in $300 million through equity and another $150 million through warrants.”
Emails sent to Riverside and Renew Power remained unanswered, while a Goldman Sachs spokesperson declined to comment. Renew is one of India’s largest renewable energy independent power producers with a capacity of 10.14GW, of which 5.73GW is operational.
MANCHESTER: Man City’s march towards reclaiming the Premier League title continued with a 3-0 romp over Tottenham on Saturday and the gap widened after Man United could only draw 1-1 at West Bromwich on Sunday, leaving them seven points adrift and City have a game in hand. Ilkay Gundogan scored twice for City who have now won 11 League games in a row. The German struck twice in the second half after Rodri’s first-half penalty, following a foul on Gundogan, had given City the lead.