JOHANNESBURG, April 19 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s rand strengthened on Monday, aided by the U.S. dollar being pinned near a one-month low and greater global risk appetite.
At 0710 GMT, the rand traded at 14.2625 versus the dollar, around 0.4% stronger than its previous close.
The dollar was dragged down by Treasury yields hovering near their lowest in five weeks after the U.S. Federal Reserve reiterated its view that any spike in inflation was likely to be temporary.
Meanwhile, greater risk sentiment, fuelled by expectations that monetary policy will remain accommodative the world over, sent Asian shares to a new high.
Nolan Wapenaar, co-chief investment officer at fund manager Anchor Capital, said the rand was also rising on expectations of lower volatility, which will embolden carry-traders seeking out higher-yielding assets, and of a continued commodity rally.
&#8220;Combining these two themes means the rand will see some offshore support for a while,&#8221; he said in a research note.
South African government bonds dipped, as the yield on the benchmark 2030 instrument rose 1 basis point to 9.07%.
Local data releases this week include the central bank&#8217;s leading indicator on Tuesday and the consumer price index on Wednesday. (Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Alexander Smith)
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South African rand gains against subdued dollar

JOHANNESBURG, April 19 &#8211; The following scheduled economic events, company announcements, equity and currency market moves may affect South African markets on Monday.

COMPANIES
Retailer Steinhoff said on Monday it would seek creditor approval to list its discount variety retailer Pepco Group.

SOUTH AFRICAN MARKETS
South Africa&#8217;s rand fell on Friday, but looked set for weekly gains after a rally the day before that took it to its best level in 15 months as falling yields in the United States drove global demand for risk assets.

GLOBAL MARKETS
Asian shares hovered near 1-1/2 week highs on Monday helped by expectations monetary policy will remain accommodative the world over, while COVID-19 vaccine rollouts help ease fears of another dangerous wave of coronavirus infections.

WALL STREET
The three main Wall Street indexes ended Friday higher for the day and week, with the S&amp;P 500 .SPX and the Dow .DJI breaking closing records, as investors took strong economic data and bank earnings as signs of momentum in the U.S. pandemic recovery.

GOLD
Gold edged higher on Monday, hovering near a seven-week peak hit in the previous session, as a weaker dollar and lower U.S. Treasury yields supported prices.

EMERGING MARKETS
For the top emerging markets news, double click on
&#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211;
Some of the main stories out in the South African press:

BUSINESS DAY
&#8211; Stalled J&amp;J vaccine rollout poised to resume this week

FIN 24
&#8211; New interim SAA CEO wants to make the airline something SA can &#8216;be proud of&#8217;
&#8211; Kganyago hits back at critics
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South African Markets – Factors to watch on April 19

April 19 (Reuters) &#8211; South African batsman AB de Villiers said he is open to a return to international cricket at this year&#8217;s Twenty20 World Cup in India and will discuss his future with national coach Mark Boucher during the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The 37-year-old retired from international cricket in 2018 but said in April last year he would consider a comeback at the T20 World Cup if it was delayed by a year to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
&#8220;We&#8217;re lined up to have a chat sometime during the IPL. But yes, we&#8217;ve been talking about it already,&#8221; De Villiers told reporters after scoring 76 for Royal Challengers Bangalore in Sunday&#8217;s 38-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders.
&#8220;Last year, he (Boucher) asked me if I would be interested. I said, &#8216;absolutely&#8217;. And come the end of the IPL, we&#8217;ll have a look at where we&#8217;re at with regards to my form and my fitness.
&#8220;Also, the situation with his team &#8212; he&#8217;s got to look at his guys who have been performing well &#8230; If there&#8217;s no space for me so be it. If I can slot in there, it&#8217;ll be fantastic if all those things fall in place.&#8221;
De Villiers has played 78 T20 games for South Africa scoring 1,672 runs at an average of 26.12 and strike rate of 135.16. (Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford )
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Cricket-South Africa’s De Villiers to discuss T20 World Cup return with Boucher

NAIROBI, April 19 (Reuters) &#8211; The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Monday. &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; &#8211; GLOBAL MARKETS Asian shares hovered near 1-1/2 week highs on Monday helped by expectations monetary policy will remain accommodative the world over, while COVID-19 vaccine rollouts help ease fears of another dangerous wave of coronavirus infections. WORLD OIL PRICES Oil prices fell on Monday amid mounting concerns that surging caseloads of coronavirus infections in India and other countries will lead to stronger measures and hit economic activity, along with demand for commodities such as crude. EMERGING MARKETS For the top emerging markets news, double click on AFRICA STOCKS For the latest news on African stocks, click on SOUTH AFRICA MARKETS South Africa&#8217;s rand fell on Friday, but looked set for weekly gains after a rally the day before that took it to its best level in 15 months as falling yields in the United States drove global demand for risk assets. KENYA MARKETS Kenya&#8217;s shilling weakened on Friday, giving up its gains from earlier in the week, driven by importers who stepped in to take advantage of the rally. NIGERIA OIL Nigeria has sweetened the terms of a sweeping oil reform bill in a bid to attract much-needed investment to its oil industry, four people closely involved with the legislation said and a letter from oil companies, seen by Reuters, showed. DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO ECONOMY Democratic Republic of Congo&#8217;s central bank slashed its benchmark interest rate on Friday by 500 basis points to 10.5% from 15.5%, saying slowing inflation had created space for its second successive large rate cut. UGANDA ELECTION The United States is imposing visa bans on Ugandan government officials accused of human rights violation and repressive acts that tainted the January election, putting pressure on longtime Western ally President Yoweri Museveni. ANGOLA OIL Global commodities trader Trafigura TRAFGF.UL has agreed to buy Angolan state oil giant Sonangol&#8217;s 31.78% stake in loss-making Puma Energy for $600 million in a step towards raising its holding to more than 90%. For the latest precious metals report click on For the latest base metals report click on For the latest crude oil report click on 
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African Markets – Factors to watch on April 19

BERLIN/FRANKFURT, April 19 (Reuters) &#8211; The following are some of the factors that may move German stocks on Monday:

CORONAVIRUS
Germany reported 11,437 new infections and 92 more deaths.

DAIMLER
German carmaker Daimler will create 1,000 new jobs for software programmers at its S-Class production facility to develop its planned MBOS operating system, Automobilwoche reported on Sunday.

BMW
BMW&#8217;s China chief says the carmaker aims for 25% of group sales in China to be electric by 2025.

BIONTECH
The coronavirus variant discovered in South Africa can break through the protection provided by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech&#8217;s COVID-19 vaccine to some extent, a real-world data study in Israel found. However, the variant&#8217;s prevalence in Israel is very low and the vaccine remains highly effective.

TELE COLUMBUS
Tele Columbus said it was launching a rights issue to raise 475 million euros ($569 million), pricing an offering of new shares at 3.25 euros apiece.

TAKKT
Takkt appoints Maria Zesch as new chief executive officer.


EX-DIVIDEND
COVESTRO &#8211; 1.30 euros/shr dividend
HENKEL &#8211; 1.85 euros/shr dividend
VONOVIA &#8211; 1.69 euros/shr dividend

ANALYSTS&#8217; VIEWS


OVERSEAS STOCK MARKETS
Dow Jones +0.5%, S&amp;P 500 +0.4%, Nasdaq +0.1% at close.
Nikkei +0.2%, Shanghai stocks +1.3%.
Time: 4:44 GMT


ECONOMY
No major German economic data scheduled.


DIARIES
REUTERS TOP NEWS ($1 = 0.8345 euros) (Reporting by Berlin, Frankfurt and Gdansk newsrooms)
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German stocks – Factors to watch on April 19

April 19 (Reuters) &#8211; Millicom International Cellular Sa :
* MILLICOM SIGNS AGREEMENTS TO CONCLUDE AFRICA DIVESTITURE PROGRAM
* MILLICOM INTERNATIONAL &#8211; ANNOUNCES SIGNED AGREEMENTS FOR SALE OF ITS OPERATIONS IN TANZANIA, FOR ITS STAKE IN AIRTELTIGO JOINT VENTURE IN GHANA
* MILLICOM INTERNATIONAL &#8211; IN TANZANIA, MILLICOM HAS AGREED TO SELL ITS ENTIRE OPERATIONS TO A CONSORTIUM LED BY AXIAN
* MILLICOM &#8211; ALONG WITH JV PARTNER, BHARTI AIRTEL LIMITED, HAVE SIGNED DEFINITIVE AGREEMENT FOR TRANSFER OF AIRTELTIGO TO GOVERNMENT OF GHANA.
* FINANCIAL DETAILS WERE NOT DISCLOSED
* WILL TAKE A $25 MILLION CHARGE AS A RESULT OF TRANSFER OF AIRTELTIGO AGREEMENT. Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
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BRIEF-Millicom Signs Agreements To Conclude Africa Divestiture Program

(Repeats April 16 column without change. John Kemp is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own)
* Chart: https://tmsnrt.rs/2Qv2Pgq
By John Kemp
LONDON, April 16 (Reuters) &#8211; For policymakers in North America and Western Europe, energy policy is often viewed exclusively through the lens of climate change, which takes priority over everything else.
But for their counterparts in developing countries, where energy is still scare and expensive, and other social problems are pressing, it is only one of a number of competing objectives.
&#8220;Taking action to combat climate change&#8221; is one of the 17 high-level sustainable development goals agreed by members of the United Nations in 2015, with a target delivery date of 2030.
Others include poverty reduction; improvements in healthcare and nutrition; access to clean energy, water and sanitation; creating better employment; and reducing inequality (https://sdgs.un.org/).
For policymakers in advanced economies, combating climate change tends to take lexical priority over all these other objectives, but their counterparts in the developing world must take a more balanced approach.
Lexical priority is just a fancy way of saying &#8220;dictionary order&#8221;. In the dictionary, all the words beginning with A come before all the entries starting with B.
For many Western policymakers, reducing carbon dioxide (CO2 ) emissions takes precedence over all other aspects of energy policy, but prioritisation is more complicated for policymakers from developing economies.

ENERGY DIVIDE
Differences in access to energy and energy consumption between the advanced and developing economies remain stark (https://tmsnrt.rs/2Qv2Pgq).
Per capita energy consumption in the OECD economies is more three times higher than in non-OECD countries according to BP (&#8220;Statistical review of world energy&#8221;, 2019).
Per capita consumption in the European Union is one-third higher than in China, five times higher than in India and almost nine times higher than in Africa.
Similarly, per capita consumption in the United States is three times higher than China, 11 times higher than India and 19 times higher than Africa.
Some differences can be attributed to geography; energy consumption tends to be greater in countries at high latitudes that need more heating. But much of the gap reflects differences in comfort and consumption.
Residents of advanced economies enjoy more heating, cooling and lighting services; travel further and more frequently, for pleasure as well as work; and consume more energy embedded in goods and services.
If they are to achieve the other 16 sustainable development goals and increase their incomes and living standards, residents of developing economies will also need to consume more energy.
In many ways, the economic development process has always been about capturing and employing increasing amounts of energy.
The process of economic and social development in the OECD economies during the 19th and 20th centuries was very energy intensive, and it is likely to be the same for non-OECD economies in the 21st century.
While the demand for energy has levelled off in the advanced economies recently, it is still increasing rapidly in developing economies as they catch up.
Per capita energy consumption in the OECD economies fell slightly by 0.2% per year between 2009 and 2019, but in non-OECD economies it rose at a compound annual rate of 1.8%.

UNMET NEEDS
The enormous scale of unmet energy demand in developing countries poses a huge challenge for attempts to control carbon dioxide emissions.
Zero-emission energy sources must be scaled up by several orders of magnitude to replace existing fossil fuel combustion and satisfy the growth in energy demand implied by the development process.
Furthermore, the population of developing countries is still growing fast, and is projected to continue increasing through the next three decades, which will boost energy consumption even more.
The population of middle-income and low-income countries has risen by 2.2 billion since 1990, and is projected to rise by another 1.9 billion by 2050 (&#8220;World population prospects&#8221;, United Nations, 2019).
In 2019, zero-emission energy sources met only one-sixth of global energy consumption, with the remainder met by fossil fuels, most of which would eventually need to be replaced to achieve the net-zero emissions target.
By 2050, global energy consumption is likely to increase by another 25-75%, based on trends over the last decade, all of which increase would need to be satisfied from zero emissions sources to achieve the net zero target.
From an advanced economy perspective, the emissions problem is largely a static one, replacing existing fossil fuel combustion with zero-emission sources.
For developing countries, it is dynamic, replacing existing fossil fuels while also adding enough extra zero-emission sources to meet burgeoning growth in energy demand.

CLIMATE AMBITION
In the run up to the 26th United Nations climate conference in November, top policymakers from North America and Western Europe have emphasised the need to set an ambitious strategy to reach net zero by 2050.
But the rhetorical priority on reducing emissions can often sound like a call to put climate change ahead of other development goals, postponing solutions to other problems until climate change has been tackled.
In reality, that sounds selfish, unfair, and politically impractical to many policymakers from developing countries, who must be sensitive to other objectives as well.
If the conference is to succeed in setting ambitious and credible goals for emissions reduction, it must demonstrate how they can be integrated with other development objectives.
Reducing CO2 emissions must go hand in hand with increasing energy consumption in middle and low-income countries, boosting their social and economic development, rather than becoming a substitute for it.

Related columns:
&#8211; Asia and the great reconvergence (Reuters, April 13)
&#8211; Global CO2 emissions far off net-zero trajectory (Reuters, April 12)
&#8211; Electricity access and climate change (Reuters, Dec. 15, 2019) (Editing by David Evans)
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RPT-COLUMN-CO2 emission limits and economic development: Kemp

Apr 18 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the PGA Tour RBC Heritage on Sunday -19 Stewart Cink (USA) 63 63 69 70 -15 Emiliano Grillo (Argentina) 68 64 69 68 Harold Varner III (USA) 66 68 69 66 -13 Corey Conners (Canada) 67 64 72 68 Matthew Fitzpatrick (England) 71 64 68 68 Maverick McNealy (USA) 71 67 66 67 -12 Chris Kirk (USA) 70 67 68 67 Collin Morikawa (USA) 65 68 67 72 -11 Russell Henley (USA) 69 70 67 67 Shane Lowry (Republic of Ireland) 70 65 72 66 Webb Simpson (USA) 71 68 64 70 Cameron Smith (Australia) 62 71 74 66 -10 Daniel Berger (USA) 67 71 66 70 Cameron Davis (Australia) 69 69 70 66 Brian Harman (USA) 67 70 67 70 Sungjae Im (Korea Republic) 68 65 69 72 Denny McCarthy (USA) 73 67 67 67 -9 Abraham Ancer (Mexico) 69 66 70 70 Charley Hoffman (USA) 68 69 67 71 Charles Howell III (USA) 66 70 74 65 Matt Kuchar (USA) 70 68 67 70 Brian Stuard (USA) 70 68 68 69 Matt Wallace (England) 65 72 65 73 Danny Willett (England) 68 71 67 69 -8 Wesley Bryan (USA) 68 66 75 67 Tom Hoge (USA) 67 67 73 69 Billy Horschel (USA) 66 67 71 72 Dustin Johnson (USA) 70 67 71 68 Tom Lewis (England) 72 67 67 70 Alex Noren (Sweden) 71 68 68 69 Adam Schenk (USA) 68 69 70 69 Camilo Villegas (Colombia) 69 68 68 71 -7 Christiaan Bezuidenhout (South Africa) 70 69 65 73 Doug Ghim (USA) 70 69 72 66 Lucas Glover (USA) 67 69 72 69 Si Woo Kim (Korea Republic) 71 67 71 68 Andrew Landry (USA) 70 70 70 67 Kevin Streelman (USA) 67 71 66 73 -6 Sam Burns (USA) 72 68 69 69 Tyrrell Hatton (England) 73 66 73 66 Brendon Todd (USA) 70 70 67 71 -5 Branden Grace (South Africa) 68 69 73 69 Scott Harrington (USA) 69 71 68 71 Chase Seiffert (USA) 71 68 69 71 Brandt Snedeker (USA) 69 71 68 71 Michael Thompson (USA) 68 67 72 72 Will Zalatoris (USA) 68 67 71 73 -4 Matthew NeSmith (USA) 68 72 70 70 Ian Poulter (England) 69 68 73 70 Kevin Tway (USA) 69 71 70 70 -3 Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) 70 69 67 75 -2 Brice Garnett (USA) 69 70 75 68 Mackenzie Hughes (Canada) 67 71 71 73 Ryan Moore (USA) 70 69 72 71 Robert Streb (USA) 68 69 74 71 -1 Dylan Frittelli (South Africa) 71 67 71 74 Kyoung-Hoon Lee (Korea Republic) 67 73 70 73 0 Luke List (USA) 74 66 72 72 1 Harry Higgs (USA) 71 68 72 74 Robert MacIntyre (Scotland) 70 67 70 78 Sepp Straka (Austria) 70 67 73 75 2 Scott Piercy (USA) 70 70 72 74 3 Lee Westwood (England) 71 68 75 73 4 Wyndham Clark (USA) 70 70 71 77 5 Sung-hoon Kang (Korea Republic) 68 68 76 77 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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PGA Tour RBC Heritage Scores

CAPE TOWN, April 18 (Reuters) &#8211; A wildfire on the slopes of South Africa&#8217;s Table Mountain forced University of Cape Town students to evacuate on Sunday, as runaway flames set several campus buildings ablaze and firefighters used helicopters to water-bomb the area.
One firefighter sustained burn wounds and was hospitalised for treatment, officials said.
The fire started early on Sunday near a memorial to politician Cecil Rhodes, located on Devils Peak, another part of Cape Town&#8217;s mountainous backdrop, before spreading rapidly up the slopes.
Heavy smoke could be seen for kilometres away, some roads were closed and fire alerts were sent to mountain hikers.
&#8220;All UCT students have been evacuated from campus by emergency services support staff,&#8221; the university said in a statement.
The university, ranked among the best on the continent, is largely built on the slopes of Devil&#8217;s Peak and is situated close to where the fire started.
Social media footage showed students milling around on the main road, amid billowing smoke fanned by strong winds. Another video, tweeted by the local government, showed flames raging inside an old building lined with columns as smoke plumes rose from its roof.
City officials said they have not asked residents in the popular Rondesbosch suburb and surrounding area to evacuate.
&#8220;The situation is being monitored and staff will go door-to-door in the event that evacuation is required,&#8221; officials said. (Reporting by Wendell Roelf Editing by Frances Kerry)
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Table Mountain wildfire threatens University of Cape Town

Apr 18 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the European Tour Austrian Open on Sunday -14 John Catlin (USA) 68 70 71 65 Maximilian Kieffer (Germany) 72 68 68 66 -11 Martin Kaymer (Germany) 68 70 69 70 -8 Marcus Armitage (England) 73 69 70 68 Wil Besseling (Netherlands) 72 71 70 67 Garrick Higgo (South Africa) 72 71 69 68 -7 Austin Bautista (Australia) 74 67 71 69 Alejandro Cañizares (Spain) 67 70 70 74 Nicolai Hojgaard (Denmark) 70 72 72 67 Jacques Kruyswijk (South Africa) 68 72 70 71 Matthias Schwab (Austria) 71 75 66 69 -6 Rasmus Hojgaard (Denmark) 71 75 69 67 Joost Luiten (Netherlands) 71 70 69 72 Renato Paratore (Italy) 78 66 71 67 -5 S.S.P. Chawrasia (India) 72 68 73 70 Lorenzo Gagli (Italy) 70 72 71 70 Sam Horsfield (England) 74 73 69 67 Kurt Kitayama (USA) 71 72 71 69 Garrick Porteous (England) 75 68 71 69 Dale Whitnell (England) 74 71 68 70 -4 Daniel Gavins (England) 69 74 67 74 Justin Walters (South Africa) 71 68 74 71 Chris Wood (England) 73 72 71 68 -3 Alejandro Del Rey (Spain) 74 71 73 67 Nicolai Von Dellingshausen (Germany) 74 72 65 74 Zander Lombard (South Africa) 72 70 77 66 Cormac Sharvin (Northern Ireland) 75 71 69 70 -2 Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (France) 72 72 70 72 Craig Howie (South Africa) 76 70 69 71 Deyen Lawson (Australia) 77 70 71 68 Richard Mansell (England) 69 71 73 73 Ricardo Santos (Portugal) 75 69 71 71 Jeff Winther (Denmark) 69 73 71 73 -1 Pep Angles (Spain) 76 71 72 68 Ashley Chesters (England) 76 69 70 72 Paul Dunne (Republic of Ireland) 73 71 72 71 Benjamin Hebert (France) 75 72 71 69 Masahiro Kawamura (Japan) 76 71 68 72 Richard McEvoy (England) 75 72 72 68 Pedro Oriol (Spain) 69 74 72 72 Bernd Ritthammer (Germany) 70 75 71 71 Adrien Saddier (France) 71 72 69 75 Max Schmitt (Germany) 72 75 69 71 Ashun Wu (China PR) 72 72 71 72 0 Gonzalo Fernandez Castano (Spain) 71 75 69 73 Julien Guerrier (France) 70 73 76 69 1 Emilio Cuartero Blanco (Spain) 71 74 73 71 Sean Crocker (USA) 75 71 71 72 Ross Fisher (England) 75 70 72 72 Rikard Karlberg (Sweden) 68 74 74 73 Sihwan Kim (Korea Republic) 71 73 72 73 Euan Walker (Scotland) 77 69 72 71 2 Maverick Antcliff (Australia) 72 74 71 73 Matthew Baldwin (England) 73 74 72 71 Marcel Schneider (Germany) 77 70 71 72 3 Eduardo De La Riva (Spain) 75 72 72 72 Berry Henson (USA) 73 73 73 72 Tyler Koivosto (USA) 74 72 73 72 Adrian Meronk (Poland) 71 70 79 71 Ajeetesh Sandhu (India) 77 70 73 71 Darius Van Driel (Netherlands) 72 74 71 74 4 David Drysdale (Scotland) 70 71 76 75 Grant Forrest (Scotland) 70 73 73 76 Chase Hanna (USA) 72 69 75 76 Søren Kjeldsen (Denmark) 72 71 72 77 Shubhankar Sharma (India) 75 68 72 77 5 Julian Suri (USA) 77 70 75 71 7 David Ravetto (France) 70 76 72 77 Callum Shinkwin (England) 72 75 74 74 9 Thomas Detry (Belgium) 70 74 72 81 James Morrison (England) 73 72 76 76 10 Timon Baltl (Austria) 74 73 76 75 16 Benjamin Poke (Denmark) 71 73 77 83 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

European Tour Austrian Open Scores

PARIS, April 18 (Reuters) &#8211; Russia&#8217;s Sputnik V anti-COVID shot is unlikely to play a part in France&#8217;s efforts to accelerate its vaccination rollout because it does not yet have approval from the European regulator, President Emmanuel Macron said.
France made a slow start to its vaccination campaign, in part due to procurement difficulties and more recently links between the AstraZeneca shot and rare cases of blood-clotting, but is now finding its stride.
Macron targets vaccinating 20 million adults, nearly a third of France&#8217;s total population, by mid-May.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t think that the Russian vaccine today is a solution to an acceleration because it will take time to have the authorization of the European agency and it will take time to produce on our continent such a vaccine,&#8221; Macron told U.S. news network CBS in an interview aired on Sunday.
Asked when France would give 5% of its vaccine doses to poor countries, as Macron has championed, the president did not give a timeframe. However, he said it was critical to fight the virus in Africa and South America to prevent new variants spreading.
Macron said the United States had an important role to play in ensuring COVID-19 vaccines were delivered to developing nations, noting that Washington has pledged $4 billion to the global COVAX vaccine sharing programme.
&#8220;We have to accelerate. And this is where I do believe your country has a huge role because you can provide financing,&#8221; he said.
France has authorised the use of vaccines made by Pfizer /BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson &amp; Johnson.

(Reporting by Richard Lough; editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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France’s Macron sees no immediate need for Russia’s COVID shot

ZURICH, April 18 (Reuters) &#8211; A modified version of AstraZeneca&#8217;s COVID-19 vaccine tailored to combat a coronavirus variant first documented in South Africa could be ready by the end of 2021, an AstraZeneca official in Austria said in an interview published on Sunday.
Sarah Walters, AstraZeneca&#8217;s Austria country manager, told the Kurier newspaper that studies, so far, indicating the existing AstraZeneca vaccine was less effective against the more infectious variant first documented in South Africa were &#8220;too small to draw final conclusions&#8221;.
&#8220;In the meantime, AstraZeneca and Oxford University have started on modifications to the vaccine for the South African variant and we expect it will be ready by the end of the year, should it be needed,&#8221; Walters told the Kurier.
Walters blamed challenges &#8211; including delivery delays for the AstraZeneca shot in the European Union &#8211; on the &#8220;complex process&#8221; of producing a vaccine, coupled with the extremely high demand arising from the coronavirus pandemic.
&#8220;We had to work without keeping a supply in reserve. As a result, we couldn&#8217;t make up for unexpected events,&#8221; she said. &#8220;We are confident that we will fulfill our commitment to deliver 300 million doses to the European Union this year.&#8221;
The Kurier interview did not directly address ongoing investigations into health concerns over the AstraZeneca shot. The EU has put a warning label on the vaccine over its possible linkage to extremely rare blood clots, Denmark has completely halted use of the vaccine and Britain has advised people under 30 to get another brand of vaccine.
Asked about &#8220;thousands&#8221; of people in Austria who are cancelling their appointments for AstraZeneca shots, Walters said the company&#8217;s plan was &#8220;to continue to transparently provide information about efficacy and safety to doctors, so that they can adequately inform people&#8221; of benefits and risks.
British and European Union medicine regulators have said that the overall benefits of using the vaccine outweigh any risks of rare clotting. (Reporting by John Miller Editing by Mark Heinrich)
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&nbsp;

AstraZeneca could have COVID-19 vaccine against variant by end-2021 -Austrian newspaper

N&#8217;DJAMENA, April 18 (Reuters) &#8211; The United States has ordered its non-essential staff in Chad to leave the African country as rebel fighters approached the capital on Sunday after early election results showed President Idriss Deby on course to extend his three-decade rule.
Deby, who seized power in 1990 at the head of an armed rebellion, is a staunch ally of France and the United States in the fight against Islamist militants in the arid Sahel region.
&#8220;Due to their growing proximity to N&#8217;Djamena and the possibility for violence in the city, non-essential U.S. government employees have been ordered to leave Chad by commercial airline,&#8221; the U.S. state department said in a statement.
The British government on Saturday urged its citizens to leave because, it said, two armed convoys from the rebel Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) were advancing towards the capital.
One convoy was seen approaching the town of Mao, about 220 km (137 miles) to the north of N&#8217;Djamena, it said.
Large numbers of heavily armed Chad security forces were patrolling the streets of the capital on Sunday morning, a Reuters witness said.
Chad&#8217;s army said it had destroyed a rebel convoy in the north of Kanem province on Saturday afternoon.
&#8220;The column was totally decimated,&#8221; army spokesman Azim Bermandoa Agouna said in a statement late on Saturday.
Partial provisional results have given Deby a strong lead in the April 11 poll despite signs of growing discontent over his handling of the nation&#8217;s oil wealth.
Deby, one of Africa&#8217;s longest-serving leaders, has successfully put down a string of rebellions since taking power, sometimes with military assistance from France.
French air strikes helped the Chad army to repel a rebel incursion from Libya in February 2019.
FACT, which is based on Chad&#8217;s northern frontier in Libya, attacked a Chadian border post on the evening of April 11, just as polling stations were closing.
On Friday FACT said it had seized a garrison of Gouri in the country&#8217;s north.
&#8220;The enemy, despite the logistical support of the French Air Force, was totally routed,&#8221; FACT spokesman Kingabe Ogouzeimi de Tapol said in a statement posted on Facebook.
France&#8217;s defence ministry on Sunday declined to comment on whether it was involved. (Reporting by Mahamat Ramadane Writing by Hereward Holland Editing by Joe Bavier and David Goodman)
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U.S. embassy to withdraw staff as Chad rebels advance

Apr 18 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the LPGA Tour Lotte Championship on Saturday -28 Lydia Ko (New Zealand) 67 63 65 65 -21 Sei Young Kim (Korea Republic) 67 68 67 65 Nelly Korda (USA) 65 68 63 71 Leona Maguire (Republic of Ireland) 68 67 65 67 Inbee Park (Korea Republic) 71 66 67 63 -19 Wei-Ling Hsu (Chinese Taipei) 67 73 63 66 Yuka Saso (Philippines) 64 64 71 70 Sarah Schmelzel (USA) 69 69 65 66 Jenny Shin (Korea Republic) 69 70 67 63 -18 A Lim Kim (Korea Republic) 70 64 70 66 Amy Yang (Korea Republic) 69 68 64 69 -17 Matilda Castren (Finland) 71 69 65 66 Hannah Green (Australia) 70 67 66 68 Georgia Hall (England) 70 68 66 67 Esther Henseleit (Germany) 71 68 66 66 Klara Spilkova (Czech Republic) 69 68 67 67 -16 Austin Ernst (USA) 69 68 68 67 Hyo Joo Kim (Korea Republic) 68 65 69 70 Yu Liu (China PR) 68 69 68 67 So-Yeon Ryu (Korea Republic) 65 68 71 68 Lexi Thompson (USA) 68 67 67 70 -15 Jennifer Kupcho (USA) 68 69 70 66 Alison Lee (USA) 70 67 71 65 Caroline Masson (Germany) 74 65 66 68 Luna Sobron (Spain) 69 64 70 70 Kelly Tan (Malaysia) 72 69 66 66 -14 Brittany Altomare (USA) 64 71 68 71 Brooke Henderson (Canada) 68 68 68 70 Su-Hyun Oh (Australia) 73 68 66 67 Paula Reto (South Africa) 69 67 69 69 Angela Stanford (USA) 69 70 67 68 Linnea Strom (Sweden) 69 67 67 71 -13 Ally Ewing (USA) 65 69 69 72 Danielle Kang (USA) 68 69 68 70 Nicole Broch Larsen (Denmark) 68 70 66 71 Jeong-Eun Lee5 (Korea Republic) 69 71 67 68 Stacy Lewis (USA) 66 70 71 68 Yealimi Noh (USA) 69 70 66 70 Hinako Shibuno (Japan) 68 71 66 70 Rose Zhang (New Zealand) 67 68 70 70 -12 Na Yeon Choi (Korea Republic) 69 72 68 67 Lizette Salas (USA) 71 68 69 68 -11 In Gee Chun (Korea Republic) 68 69 70 70 Lauren Coughlin (USA) 70 69 67 71 Jeong-Eun Lee6 (Korea Republic) 69 72 67 69 Xiyu Lin (China PR) 69 72 64 72 Amy Olson (USA) 69 68 70 70 -10 Kristen Gillman (USA) 70 70 71 67 Mina Harigae (USA) 71 70 67 70 Jessica Korda (USA) 67 70 70 71 Mi-Hyang Lee (Korea Republic) 67 68 70 73 Pernilla Lindberg (Sweden) 73 67 68 70 Lindsey Weaver (USA) 72 67 70 69 -9 Brianna Do (Vietnam) 68 66 71 74 Azahara Munoz (Spain) 69 68 71 71 Louise Ridderstrom (Sweden) 70 71 69 69 -8 Aditi Ashok (India) 69 69 70 72 Jennifer Chang (USA) 72 69 65 74 Chella Choi (Korea Republic) 70 70 69 71 Dana Finkelstein (USA) 73 68 71 68 Haeji Kang (Korea Republic) 69 72 68 71 Stephanie Meadow (Northern Ireland) 67 70 73 70 Mind Muangkhumsakul (Thailand) 72 68 67 73 -7 Tiffany Chan (Hong Kong) 70 71 67 73 Kim In-Kyung (Korea Republic) 69 72 71 69 Giulia Molinaro (Italy) 72 69 71 69 Haley Moore (USA) 70 71 69 71 Anne Van Dam (Netherlands) 68 70 72 71 -6 Celine Herbin (France) 70 69 68 75 Jillian Hollis (USA) 70 69 71 72 Jing Yan (China PR) 75 66 70 71 -5 Nasa Hataoka (Japan) 71 69 71 72 Gerina Piller (USA) 71 70 70 72 Alena Sharp (Canada) 71 66 72 74 0 Sarah Burnham (USA) 70 68 76 74 Anne Catherine Tanguay (Canada) 72 69 71 76 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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LPGA Tour Lotte Championship Scores

Stewart Cink woke up Saturday with a five-stroke lead at the RBC Heritage and maintained that margin with a 2-under 69 in the third round at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, S.C.
At 18 under, Cink leads Collin Morikawa by five. Emiliano Grillo is in third at 12 under.
Cink set the tournament&#8217;s 54-hole scoring record previously held by Justin Leonard (16 under in 2002).
The 47-year-old is not only looking to earn his third career victory at Harbour Town, following wins in 2000 and 2004, but also to become just the second player on tour to win multiple events this season. He won the season-opening Safeway Open last September.
&#8220;I&#8217;m halfway to home compared to where I was yesterday,&#8221; Cink told reporters. &#8220;It would be &#8212; I think tomorrow I could play another round like this, and our game plan still held and it was good and there was no surprises out there really for the most part.&#8221;
Cink opened the tournament with a pair of 63s, so by comparison Saturday&#8217;s round was more pedestrian. He bounced back from a bogey on the third hole to make birdie on the par-3 fourth and the par-5 fifth. But Cink managed just one more birdie the rest of the day.
&#8220;It was not the hottest day with the putter, but under the circumstances it&#8217;s not easy to remain totally freed up, so that&#8217;s kind of what I was doing out there today,&#8221; Cink said. &#8220;I was a little bit tied up in the results and it&#8217;s something I can recognize and hopefully get better at (Sunday). But it&#8217;s natural; it happens to everybody.&#8221;
Morikawa, the 24-year-old who won the 2020 PGA Championship and ranks fourth in the Official World Golf Ranking, will be in hot pursuit of Cink. After playing the front nine even par, Morikawa pulled out birdies on holes 13, 14, 15 and 17 for a 4-under 67.
&#8220;I mean, it shows that there&#8217;s 62s, there&#8217;s 63s out on this golf course; I just have to go out there and find it,&#8221; Morikawa said. &#8220;Each day I&#8217;ve shown little specks of good golf, I&#8217;ve just got to put it all together for (Sunday&#8217;s) final round if I want a chance.&#8221;
Grillo, from Argentina, acknowledged Cink&#8217;s commanding lead by saying his third-round 69 kept him in the mix for second place.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve just got to go and play my game,&#8221; Grillo said. &#8220;Just got to shoot the lowest number I can. Like I said, just wait for Stewart not to play so well. I hope for the best for him, but I also want to win.&#8221;
At 11 under and tied for fourth are Matt Wallace and Sungjae Im. Wallace shot a bogey-free 65 to charge up the leaderboard.
Tied for sixth at 10 under are Matt Fitzpatrick, Harold Varner III, Corey Conners and defending champion Webb Simpson. Simpson carded a bogey-free 64 early in the day to make his move.
One of seven players tied at 9 under, Christiaan Bezuidenhout of South Africa, strung together five straight birdies from holes 2 through 6 on his way to a 65.
&#8211;Field Level Media
(c) Copyright Field Level Media. All Rights Reserved. 2021
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Stewart Cink maintains lead, seeks third title at RBC Heritage

April 17 (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s health regulator, on Saturday, recommended that the government lift the pause on administering drugmaker Johnson &amp; Johnson&#8217;s COVID-19 vaccines, given that certain conditions are met.
&#8220;These conditions include, but are not limited to, strengthened screening and monitoring of participants who are at high risk of a blood clotting disorder,&#8221; the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) said.
&#8220;In addition, measures are to be implemented to ensure the safe management of any participants who develop vaccine-induced thrombosis and thrombocytopenia (VITT),&#8221; the statement added.
SAHPRA said on Wednesday that it had recently reviewed data from Johnson &amp; Johnson&#8217;s local research study immunising healthcare workers and found no major safety concerns.
South Africa suspended the rollout of the J&amp;J vaccine in the &#8220;implementation study&#8221; on Tuesday, after U.S. health agencies recommended pausing its use because of rare cases of blood clots in six people inoculated with it, out of some 7 million people who have received the shot in the United States.
A U.S. panel will meet again next week to discuss whether the pause on the use of the vaccine should continue, after delaying a vote on the matter earlier this week. (Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions &#8211; https://agency.reuters.com/en/copyright.html
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South Africa regulator recommends lifting J&J vaccine pause after some conditions

Apr 17 (OPTA) &#8211; Scores from the PGA Tour RBC Heritage on Saturday -18 Stewart Cink (USA) 63 63 69 -13 Collin Morikawa (USA) 65 68 67 -12 Emiliano Grillo (Argentina) 68 64 69 -11 Sungjae Im (Korea Republic) 68 65 69 Matt Wallace (England) 65 72 65 -10 Corey Conners (Canada) 67 64 72 Matthew Fitzpatrick (England) 71 64 68 Webb Simpson (USA) 71 68 64 Harold Varner III (USA) 66 68 69 -9 Daniel Berger (USA) 67 71 66 Christiaan Bezuidenhout (South Africa) 70 69 65 Brian Harman (USA) 67 70 67 Charley Hoffman (USA) 68 69 67 Billy Horschel (USA) 66 67 71 Maverick McNealy (USA) 71 67 66 Kevin Streelman (USA) 67 71 66 -8 Abraham Ancer (Mexico) 69 66 70 Chris Kirk (USA) 70 67 68 Matt Kuchar (USA) 70 68 67 Camilo Villegas (Colombia) 69 68 68 -7 Russell Henley (USA) 69 70 67 Tom Lewis (England) 72 67 67 Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) 70 69 67 Brian Stuard (USA) 70 68 68 Danny Willett (England) 68 71 67 Will Zalatoris (USA) 68 67 71 -6 Tom Hoge (USA) 67 67 73 Shane Lowry (Republic of Ireland) 70 65 72 Robert MacIntyre (Scotland) 70 67 70 Denny McCarthy (USA) 73 67 67 Alex Noren (Sweden) 71 68 68 Adam Schenk (USA) 68 69 70 Cameron Smith (Australia) 62 71 74 Michael Thompson (USA) 68 67 72 Brendon Todd (USA) 70 70 67 -5 Cameron Davis (Australia) 69 69 70 Lucas Glover (USA) 67 69 72 Scott Harrington (USA) 69 71 68 Dustin Johnson (USA) 70 67 71 Chase Seiffert (USA) 71 68 69 Brandt Snedeker (USA) 69 71 68 -4 Wesley Bryan (USA) 68 66 75 Sam Burns (USA) 72 68 69 Dylan Frittelli (South Africa) 71 67 71 Mackenzie Hughes (Canada) 67 71 71 Si Woo Kim (Korea Republic) 71 67 71 -3 Branden Grace (South Africa) 68 69 73 Charles Howell III (USA) 66 70 74 Andrew Landry (USA) 70 70 70 Kyoung-Hoon Lee (Korea Republic) 67 73 70 Matthew NeSmith (USA) 68 72 70 Ian Poulter (England) 69 68 73 Sepp Straka (Austria) 70 67 73 Kevin Tway (USA) 69 71 70 -2 Wyndham Clark (USA) 70 70 71 Doug Ghim (USA) 70 69 72 Harry Higgs (USA) 71 68 72 Ryan Moore (USA) 70 69 72 Robert Streb (USA) 68 69 74 -1 Tyrrell Hatton (England) 73 66 73 Sung-hoon Kang (Korea Republic) 68 68 76 Luke List (USA) 74 66 72 Scott Piercy (USA) 70 70 72 1 Brice Garnett (USA) 69 70 75 Lee Westwood (England) 71 68 75 
(c) Copyright Opta Sports Data 2021. All Rights Reserved
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