MANILA -- An oil tanker and a cargo ship collided in waters off Cavite City, southwest of the Philippine capital of Manila, but no one was injured, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said on Thursday.

PCG spokesperson Commodore Armando Balilo said the Thailand-registered motor tanker Rich Rainbow was sailing from the Philippines to China when it collided with the incoming Marshall Islands-registered Ivy Alliance off the coast of Cavite City on Wednesday night. (Philippines-Ship collision)

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RIO DE JANEIRO -- Occupancy levels at Brazil's intensive care units (ICU) have surpassed 90 percent in 21 of the country's 26 regional capitals, the highest rates since the country's first COVID-19 case was announced.

Regional daily "Folha de Sao Paulo" said on Wednesday that ICUs in four state capitals, namely Belo Horizonte, Campo Grande, Rio Branco and Porto Velho, have reached full capacity. (Brazil-COVID-19-ICU)

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GENEVA -- Global airline industry organization the International Air Transport Association (IATA) on Wednesday voiced cautious optimism that the European aviation industry could take off again in the second half of the year thanks to the rollout of vaccines. But it still called for more government rescue packages to weather the COVID-19 storm.

Reiterating that "this is the most challenging crisis the industry has ever faced," the Geneva-based IATA showed in its latest assessment that passenger traffic continued to fall in February, both compared to pre-COVID levels and the month of January. (Europe-Airlines-Vaccine)

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NEW YORK -- New York State would collect billions of additional tax dollars from rich people and corporations each year in order to secure funds for expensive spending amid the pandemic, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo said.

After striking a deal with Cuomo on the 212-billion-U.S. dollar budget on Tuesday, the New York State Senate and Assembly passed the budget bill for the fiscal year 2022, beginning April 1 this year. (US-New York-Tax)

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UNITED NATIONS -- There has been substantial improvement in humanitarian access in Tigray region in northern Ethiopia, but continued fighting is driving massive displacement, creating a dire situation, the United Nations said on Wednesday.

With active hostilities reported in several parts of Tigray, tens of thousands of people shifted towards urban areas, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said. (UN-Tigray-Situation-Dire) Enditem

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