Australia's most populous state of Sydney reported an increase in new Covid-19 infections Monday despite a weekslong stay-at-home order.

Police promised to crack down on any repeat of a wild antilockdown protest at the weekend, Channel News Asia said.

In Indonesia, authorities said Monday small businesses and some shopping malls can reopen despite warnings that easing restrictions could trigger another virus wave.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said measures carried out early this month would continue until Aug. 2 as the Delta variant spreads across the country.

In Malaysia, half of the country's 900,000 small and medium-sized enterprises could fold if the current nationwide lockdown is extended beyond September, an industry group has warned.

Since the pandemic broke out in 2020, at least 150,000 SMEs have closed down, resulting in 1.2 million job losses, the SME Association of Malaysia said.

Over in Thailand, the country logged a record 15,375 new infections and 87 new deaths over the previous 24 hours, health officials announced Monday morning.

Thailand currently has an accumulated caseload of more than 500,000, The Bangkok Post reported.

In South Korea, the government launched new vaccinations for people aged 55 to 59 Monday to accelerate the pace of its immunization campaign, as the country grapples with a fourth wave of infections.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency reported 1,317 new infections Sunday. The country's total cases stand at 190,165, with 2,076 fatalities.

In Japan, the Tokyo metropolitan government reported 1,762 new infections Sunday, up 635 from the previous day.

Tokyo's average cases over the past week stands at 1453.6. Nationwide, the number of reported infections as of Sunday was 5,020, Japan Today reported.

In Vietnam, Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said Sunday the country has reached a deal with the U.S. on technology transfer for Covid-19 vaccine and will start production next year.

The health minister said Vietnam has also reached agreements on vaccine technology transfers with Japan and Russia, according to VNExpress.

In the Philippines, 55 new cases of the more contagious Delta variant were confirmed by the Department of Health Sunday.

So far, the Philippines' total tally of Delta infections is 119. Overall, 103 recovered, 12 are recovering and four have died, DOH said.

In Hong Kong, health officials said reaching herd immunity against the virus is no longer a realistic goal for the city.

Hong Kong's medical experts agree instead for the city to prepare to live with the virus, the South China Morning Post reported.

"I don't think we'll be able to attain herd immunity through vaccination alone," professor Benjamin Cowling, a leading University of Hong Kong epidemiologist, said.

Over in China, health authorities reported 76 new infections Sunday, the highest since the end of January in the wake of a surge of local cases in the eastern city of Nanjing.

Total confirmed infections in mainland China stand at 92,604, and the death toll remains at 4,635, CNA said.

Worldwide, there are currently 194 million cases of the virus and 4.16 million people have died from the disease.