The United States logged a record new daily virus caseload as Joe Biden slammed the Trump administration's vaccine roll-out as a "travesty" and millions in Asia woke up to new lockdowns.

England wakes up on Tuesday to a new national lockdown to contain a surge in Covid-19 cases that threatens to overwhelm parts of the health system before a vaccine programme reaches a critical mass.

Britain starts rolling out the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech on Tuesday, the first Western country to start vaccinating its general population in what was hailed as a decisive watershed in defeating the coronavirus.

The United States notched a record number of coronavirus cases in 24 hours for the third day running, as it was reported that Britain's Queen Elizabeth II will get a vaccine within weeks

The UK government will announce on Monday that self-isolation will no longer be required for those who have come into contact with people who have tested positive for Covid-19, the Telegraph reported.

The head of an Indian company contracted to make AstraZeneca Plc's -19 vaccine said India could get access to it by January, as the country's total infections crossed nine million. Mass production of Russia's second vaccine could begin in 2021.

The global tally of people infected by the coronavirus shot past 50 million on Monday, as United States President-elect Joe Biden geared up to name the scientists who will lead the country's response to its disastrous outbreak.

Coronavirus cases in the United States surged by at least 120,276 on Thursday, according to a Reuters tally, the second consecutive daily record rise as the outbreak spreads in every region.

India's tally of coronavirus cases stood less than 10,000 away from the grim milestone of 8 million, while a Reuters tally showed nearly half a million people have contracted Covid-19 in the United States over the last seven days.

A number of countries tightened anti-coronavirus measures on Saturday, with France extending a curfew and Belgium bringing forward its own, as Germany's death toll passed 10,000 and the US reported 80,000 infections in a single day.

European countries from Denmark to Greece have announced new restrictions to curb surging coronavirus infections in some of their largest cities, while Britain is considering new measures to tackle an "inevitable"..

The Covid-19 pandemic has killed at least 715,343 people worldwide since it surfaced in China late last year, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP at 1100 GMT on Friday.