Overview: Asia, Europe, Saudi Arabia

Factbox: Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus Parts of Asia looked to crack down on rising COVID-19 cases by conducting mass tests, while public health agencies in the United States approved the use of vaccines in young children and in Europe began the review of a variant-adapted vaccine. Reuters Reuters

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* The world's biggest gambling hub Macau began its second day of mass COVID-19 testing on Monday after dozens of locally transmitted cases were discovered over the weekend, with most businesses shut but casinos remaining open. read more

* Thailand said on Friday it would abandon its much-criticised pre-registration process for foreign visitors and no longer require face masks to be worn in public. read more

* North Korea recorded another 18,820 new fever cases amid its first official COVID-19 outbreak, state news agency KCNA said. read more

* North Korea abruptly stopped importing COVID-19 prevention and control products from China in May, trade data released by Beijing showed. read more

* The European Medicines Agency started a rolling review of a variant-adapted COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna on Friday, as coronavirus cases linked to Omicron sub-variants see an uptick in the region. read more

* Saudi Arabia lifted coronavirus travel restrictions for its citizens travelling to Turkey, India, Ethiopia and Vietnam, state news agency SPA reported. read more

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