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Delhi ran out of Covaxin jabs for those aged 18-44. A local official said 125 vaccination centers will have to close Wednesday if supplies aren’t restocked. Delhi has three days’ worth of Covishield shots for young people, and only a few days left before it runs out of both vaccines for residents over 45.
The US is considering joint production of the Johnson & Johnson jab in India. A US embassy official said “we are determined to do all we can” to boost vaccine production, including providing financial assistance.
Narendra Modi backed out of a trip to the UK. The Indian prime minister will not attend the G7 summit in person next month due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.
Fighting continued between Israel and Hamas. Israeli airstrikes killed several more Palestinians in Gaza, while rockets fired from the area left at least three Israelis dead.
NFTs are coming to eBay. The online marketplace announced it will allow the sale of non-fungible tokens for digital assets like images, trading cards, and video clips.
Oatly’s IPO could give it a valuation of $10 billion. The oat milk producer will start trading on New York’s Nasdaq exchange next week.
The UN holds a virtual event on human rights in Xinjiang. China has denounced today’s meeting, which was planned by the US, UK, and Germany.
What to watch for
Less than two years ago, South Korea-based Coupang was hemorrhaging money after it received $2.7 billion in funding from SoftBank while pushing to expand by endearing itself to customers with stunts like early morning and late-night deliveries.
However, the firm managed to cut its losses from $770.2 million in 2019 to $567 million last year. Its March 2021 IPO raised another $4.6 billion and gave it a market capitalization of $84.5 billion on the first day of trading.
Now, after Coupang snapped up half of the e-commerce growth in Korea last year, analysts and especially SoftBank are expecting the Amazon of Korea to behave more like its namesake when it reports earnings today, with revenue poised to rise past $2.19 billion, up from $1.88 billion in 2020. A return to its money-losing ways, however, could wreak havoc on SoftBank’s $100 billion Vision Fund.
Charting the US’ renewable energy progress
Over the last two decades, the US has seen a 12,000% increase in installed solar panel capacity and a 4,800% uptick in onshore wind turbines.
But offshore wind has always lagged behind, even as China and European countries forged ahead with booming offshore wind industries. This is poised to change over the next few years, as the Biden administration has signed off on the US’ first major offshore wind farm.
An individual offshore wind farm can produce far more energy than most onshore wind or solar installations; in terms of megawatts, the new Martha’s Vineyard wind farm will be larger than all but the three largest onshore wind farms in the US.
A new license plate policy in China could help Tesla
Shanghai, which is home to Tesla’s Chinese factory, has stopped issuing free license plates for EVs priced under 100,000 yuan ($15,560), according to local dealers and Chinese media reports. This news comes despite the popularity of the Hong Guang Mini, manufactured by SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile—a joint venture between state-run car giant SAIC, General Motors, and Guangxi Automobile.
To curb congestion and air pollution, residents of large Chinese cities must enter a lucky draw for license plates. A plate can cost as much as 100,000 yuan ($15,566). But to encourage cleaner transportation, Shanghai has been issuing free license plates to EV owners since 2013.
As such, many users have purchased the Hong Guang Mini not only because of its low price point, but also the license plate attached to it. Beyond the Hong Guang Mini, China has another 30 or so budget EV brands that could also be affected by the change.
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Surprising discoveries
Two whales were caught hugging. The rare display of affection was captured by a drone camera.
Americans from across the political spectrum believe social media does more to divide than unite. Nearly two-thirds of respondents to a recent poll agree.
A tiger is on the loose in Houston. A man seen with the feline has been taken into custody, but the whereabouts of the big cat are still unknown.
A marine worm that lives inside sponges has hundreds of anuses. But only one mouth.
Owls are a sign of alien encounters. At least that’s what some UFO hunters believe.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, missing tigers, and eerie owl encounters to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by downloading our iOS app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Tim McDonnell, Jane Li, Liz Webber, and Jordan Lebeau.