COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this week

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 have passed 601.5 million globally, according to Johns Hopkins University. The number of confirmed deaths has now passed 6.48 million. More than 12.57 billion vaccination doses have been administered globally, according to Our World in Data.

Chinese customs no longer requires cross-border travellers to report certain COVID-related information, such as tests and previous infections.

Japan will waive pre-departure COVID-19 tests for vaccinated travellers to the country – but daily caps on entrants will remain.

German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach says he expects a wave of COVID-19 infections this autumn – but he has ruled out further lockdowns or school closures.

Moderna has sought US authorization for its COVID-19 booster shot tailored against the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of Omicron. The firm says that if the jab is cleared, it will be ready to deliver the doses in September.

Pfizer and BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine is 73.2% effective in preventing the disease among children aged 6 months to 4 years, according to new data from the companies.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has signed off the use of Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine for adolescents aged 12-17. Britain's medical regulator has also done so.

The European Medicines Agency will hold an extraordinary meeting on 1 September to discuss applications from Moderna and Pfizer for COVID-19 vaccine boosters modified to target the Omicron variant.

Americans will no longer be able to order free at-home COVID-19 tests from a US government website from 2 September. This is because of supply issues caused by a lack of congressional funding.

Swiss drugs regulator Swissmedic has approved the first bivalent COVID-19 booster vaccine in the country.

Japan's health ministry has said a panel of experts has agreed to approve the manufacturing and sale of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 preventative treatment Evusheld.

China's National Health Commission says that COVID-19 has contributed to a decline in the country's marriage and birth rates that had already been accelerating in recent years due to the high costs of education and child-rearing.

Many women are continuing to delay their plans to marry or have children, it says, adding that rapid economic and social developments have led to "profound changes".

Young people relocating to urban areas, more time spent in education, and high-pressure working environments have also played a part, it adds.

"The coronavirus has also had a clear impact on the marriage and childbirth arrangements of some people," the commission told Reuters.

Several large Chinese cities increased their COVID-19 restrictions on 30 August. Shenzhen has closed businesses while Dalian has locked down millions of residents.

The fresh measures – currently scheduled to last just a few days – reflect China's so-called "dynamic COVID zero" policy, which aims to eliminate every outbreak that emerges.

Longhua – a Shenzhen district with 2.5 million residents – has closed various entertainment venues and wholesale marketplaces, and suspended large events.

People must show proof of negative test results within 24 hours to enter residential compounds, and restaurants have to limit the number of customers to no more than 50% of their capacity, Longhua's district authority says. The new measures are expected to end on Saturday.

The moves follow similar measures announced a day earlier for three other districts, affecting more than 6 million people in Shenzhen, which has fought multiple outbreaks of Omicron sub-variants this year.

The main urban areas of Dalian – a major port in northeastern China that is important for imports of soybeans and iron ore – entered a lockdown that is to last until Sunday. The areas have around 3 million residents. Households are allowed to send only one person out per day to shop for daily necessities.