Yesterday the leader of the state of New South Wales (the epicentre of the current, and largest, wave of COVID-19 infections in Australia) announced a very slight planned easing of restrictions from the middle of next month.
Link here (see the pic): Coronavirus: 1029 a record high new cases for Sydney / NSW (Australia's largest population city and state)
A further easing of restrictions will come into play as vaccination rates rise, as they rapidly are, especially in NSW.
NAB comment that:
- It is unclear whether this will be a model for the rest of Australia, but what is clear is that Australia is beginning its transition to living with the virus.
Like it or not, this is correct. Data from NSW is showing hospitalisation rates are dribbling lower even as case counts rise. Vaccination is helpful in protecting most of those who catch the infection from developing severe symptoms. Vaccination is not a magic suit that repels infection but it is pulling up symptoms short. As this takes the pressure off hospitals Australia (and elsewhere) will open further. The most at risk (i.e. older people) are achieving strong vaccination rates, another plus.
Australia is already planning for booster shots, if needed:
Meanwhile, AUD/USD carrying on its downdraft from overnight:
ForexLive charts are free, link here, a very helpful widget if you need from Trading View indeed!
