COVID-19

The Valencian Community will keep its territorial borders closed for another seven days – until at least 19th November. A second extension to the border closure was approved via decree last Thursday, 5th November, until midnight tonight. (Official source.) A new closure has not yet been published in the official bulletin of the Valencian region (DOGV). But Valencian Community president, Ximo Puig, yesterday told reporters that 'everything pointed to' closure […]

International passengers from 'high-risk' countries will need a negative PCR test for coronavirus before entering Spain from 23rd November. Travellers from 'high-risk' countries will need a negative PCR test to enter Spain from 23rd November. High-risk EU countries include any with an accumulated incidence above 50 coronavirus cases per 100,000 inhabitants. High-risk would currently include the UK (437), France (887), Portugal (572), the Netherlands (594) and Germany (270). Health Minister […]

Some 500,000 pregnancy-style tests will be distributed across Spanish pharmacies, to allow home COVID-19 testing. A new self-diagnosis test for COVID-19 will soon be available in Spanish pharmacies. The pregnancy-style tests will check for antibodies to the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. It will be available in the next few days, reports Valencian daily Las Provincias. In fact, it is the Valencian company ELIX Pharma who will become the first company […]

Spain's minister of the treasury said the move avoided the risk of 'multimillion' fines from Brussels. Sanitary masks will see their value-added tax (IVA) dropped from 21% to 4%, in new measures to be approved next week. Spain's minister of the treasury, María Jesús Montero, confirmed the government will approved a new royal decree including the measure next Tuesday. It comes after the European Commission announced it would not take […]

Some 3% of hotel beds in the Canary Islands have been set aside for illegal immigrants, whose arrivals have exploded 664% compared to 2019. The 'English Beach' on Gran Canaria's southern coast was built in the 60s to cater for growing European tourism. But in 2020, beachside hotels in the Malpalomas area have closed to their main customer to make way for another: illegal immigrants. Some 11,409 immigrants have arrived […]

48.3% of Spanish respondents to a national survey (CIS) said they would not take a COVID-19 vaccine. Now that American-based Pfizer's vaccine has shown to prevent COVID-19 in 90% of those inoculated, does that change anything? Show your answers below. [poll id="9"] READ MORE: HOPE: Shares in FTSE tourism businesses sky-rocket after breakthrough vaccine from Pfizer READ MORE: Pfizer vaccine in Spain by 'April 2021' and FREE – but 43% […]

The Valencian Community should be on maximum health alert according to Spain's four-tier system – but no corresponding measures have been announced yet. Critical COVID-19 patients are now taking up 28% of available intensive care (UCI) beds in the Valencian Community. This pushes the region (Alicante, Valencia and Castellón) into the maximum 'extremo' alert, according to Spain's four-tier system. The system sets thresholds of 5-10% for a region to find […]

Spain's central government has announced that 20 million doses of breakthrough-vaccine Pfizer will be in Spain by 'April to May' 2021. American-based Pfizer yesterday announced their new COVID-19 vaccine prevents the respiratory disease in 90% of patients. It was news that sent the stock market soaring – see how EasyJet stocks rose 27% in our write-up here. This morning, Spain's health minister told state television station TVE he was signing […]

Shares in FTSE companies have shot up today after a COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer showed promising results – tourism, entertainment and hospitality have biggest industry winners so far. The FTSE 100 raced up 5% today with some of the worst-affected stocks during the COVID-19 pandemic leading the market. Tourism-related business such as airport catering giant Compass shot up 42%, while British Airways' owner IAG jumped 23% and EasyJet surged 27%. […]