The Latest: Japan to produce 90M doses of AstraZeneca shots

TOKYO — More than 90 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine will be produced in Japan by a Japanese pharmaceutical company through a licensing agreement. It will cover three quarters of the supply the British-Swedish pharmaceutical company has pledged to provide to the country, officials said...

EXPLAINER: Why it's hard to make vaccines and boost supplies

With demand for COVID-19 vaccines outpacing the world’s supplies, a frustrated public and policymakers want to know: How can we get more? A lot more. Right away. The problem: “It’s not like adding more water to the soup,” said vaccine specialist Maria Elena Bottazzi of Baylor College...

Vaccine factory inspected amid EU dispute with AstraZeneca

BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian health authorities said Thursday they have inspected a pharmaceutical factory to determine whether expected delays in the deliveries of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine are actually due to production issues amid a heated public dispute between the European Union and the...

Asian shares drop after US stocks' worst day since October

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares skidded on Thursday as a reality check set in about longtime economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic, giving Wall Street its worst day since October. Benchmarks in Japan, South Korea, Australia and China declined Thursday. The region is looking ahead to earnings season for a...

Tensions rise as AstraZeneca, EU spar over vaccine delays

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union and drugmaker AstraZeneca sparred Wednesday over a delay in coronavirus vaccine deliveries amid a deepening dispute that raises concerns about international competition for limited supplies of the shots needed to end the pandemic. AstraZeneca Chief Executive Pascal Soriot...

UK vaccine plant evacuated after getting suspicious package

LONDON (AP) — A British pharmaceutical manufacturing company producing coronavirus vaccines had to partially evacuate its factory Wednesday after receiving a “suspicious package.” The U.K. arm of Mumbai-based pharmaceutical company Wockhardt, which is producing the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine...

US durable goods orders show modest 0.2% December gain

WASHINGTON (AP) — Orders to U.S. factories for big-ticket manufactured goods rose a modest 0.2% in December, held back by a big drop in the volatile aircraft sector. A key category that tracks business investment decisions slowed. The rise in orders for durable goods, items expected to last at least three...

Small Massachusetts medical facility to shut down in 2 years

WARE, Mass. (AP) — A small Massachusetts hospital will shut down in two years because it is just not seeing enough patients, the CEO of its parent company says. Operations at Baystate Mary Lane Outpatient Center in Ware will gradually be shifted to other facilities including Baystate Wing Hospital in...

Orders to US factories for big-ticket manufactured goods rose modest 0.2% in December with investment posting 0.6% gain

WASHINGTON (AP) — Orders to US factories for big-ticket manufactured goods rose modest 0.2% in December with investment posting 0.6% gain.

The Latest: Texas COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to fall

AUSTIN, Texas — The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Texas continues to fall from record highs as the state nears the end of what has been its deadliest month of the pandemic. State health officials Monday reported fewer than 13,000 people were being treated for the virus in Texas hospitals,...