Germany’s Spahn: Another 10 weeks of covid vaccine shortage likely

“We'll experience at least another 10 weeks of vaccine shortage,” Germany’s Health Minister Jens Spahn said on Thursday.  

This comes after reports said last week that the EU would get 60% fewer doses of the vaccine than promised for January-March 2021.

A meeting between the European Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides and AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot held on Wednesday, failed to secure commitments from the drug maker to address a “massive” shortfall in coronavirus vaccine production.

Kyriakides said: “We regret the continued lack of clarity on the delivery schedule and request a clear plan from AstraZeneca for the fast delivery of the quantity of vaccines that we reserved for Q1.”

Meanwhile, Soriot blamed the EU for being three months slower than the UK in finalizing its purchase agreements for the vaccine, earlier this week.

Separately, Germany’s Interior Ministry confirmed that Europe’s top economy is preparing entry restrictions for travellers from the UK, Brazil and South Africa.

Market reaction

The above comments are not going to go down too well, as the market sentiment remains tepid amid mounting covid and global growth concerns.

EUR/USD was last seen trading at 1.2092, down 0.12% on the day, as the safe-haven dollar remains broadly bid amid risk-averse market conditions.