Briefly

UNITED KINGDOM

Virus shrinks economy 19.8 percent in quarter

Britain suffered a record collapse in economic output in the second quarter of 2020. Gross domestic product shrank by 19.8 percent in the three months to June, the Office for National Statistics said, slightly less than an initial estimate of a quarterly 20.4 percent coronavirus-induced crash but still more than for any other major advanced economy. The fall was the biggest since the agency's records began in 1955.

RUSSIA

Clinical trials of second vaccine candidate end

Russia has completed clinical trials of a second potential vaccine against COVID-19, developed by Siberia's Vector Institute, the RIA news agency cited Russian consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor as saying on Wednesday. The institute completed early-stage human trials, known as Phase II, in September.

UNITED STATES

TikTok election guide tackles misinformation

TikTok on Tuesday launched a US election guide as part of an effort to battle misinformation on the videosharing app that the White House has targeted for a ban. TikTok said the guide will give users access to information about candidates from BallotReady, and about how to vote in each state, from the National Association of Secretaries of State.

DPRK

Politburo discusses COVID-19 measures

Kim Jong-un, the top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, presided over a Politburo meeting on the country's battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, the official Korean Central News Agency reported on Wednesday. The meeting pointed out some faults found in preventing the inroads of the virus and involved an in-depth discussion on how to intensify the state's anti-epidemic efforts.

Agencies - Xinhua