Global coronavirus cases surpass 3.5m as countries ease lockdowns

Global coronavirus cases surpassed 3.5 million on Monday and deaths neared a quarter of a million.

North America and European countries, where growth rates are easing, still accounted for most of the new infections reported in recent days.

But case numbers were rising from smaller bases in Latin America, Africa and Russia, and experts expressed concern that the overall data falls well short of the true impact of the pandemic.

Globally, there were 74,779 new cases over the past 24 hours, according to the Reuters tally that is based on official government data, taking total cases to about 3.52 million.

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That compares with about about 3 million to 5 million cases of severe illness caused annually by seasonal influenza, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), but falls far short of the Spanish flu, which began in 1918 and infected an estimated 500 million people.

Deaths related to Covid-19, the disease caused by the new virus, stood at 246,920. The first death was reported on January 10th in Wuhan, China, after the virus emerged there in December.

The daily rate of new cases worldwide has been sitting in a 2 per cent-3 per cent range over the past week, versus a peak of around 13 per cent in mid-March, prompting many countries to begin easing lockdown measures that have upended businesses and crippled the global economy.

The loosening of restrictions has proved controversial, however, as experts debate the best strategy to ensure there is no large “second wave” outbreak.

Here are the latest updates on the pandemic from around the world:

NEW ZEALAND

New Zealand reported no new cases of coronavirus on Monday, marking a significant moment that indicated the country's bold strategy of trying to eliminate the virus was working.

It was the first time since the outbreak took hold in mid-March that the country has reported zero new cases. New Zealand closed its borders and imposed a strict month-long lockdown after the outbreak began.

The lockdown rules were eased a little last week to help reopen the economy, but many restrictions remain in place. Many businesses — including most retail stores and sit-down restaurants — remain closed, most schoolchildren are learning from home, and people are required to maintain social distancing.

Prime minister Jacinda Ardern said a decision would be made next Monday on whether to ease the rules further. "We cannot afford to squander the good work to date when our end goal is so close and within reach," she said.

New Zealand has reported nearly 1,500 cases of the virus and 20 deaths.

JAPAN

Economy minister Yasutoshi Nishimura told reporters that experts supported the government’s plan to extend a state of emergency through to the end of May.

Prime minister Shinzo Abe is set to formally announce an extension after the plan gets parliamentary approval later on Monday.

Japan has more than 15,000 cases and 510 deaths, according to the health ministry.

Mr Nishimura earlier said Tokyo and other prefectures being hit hard by the virus are expected to keep the emergency measures fully in place, while they could be eased elsewhere if ample preventive steps are taken.

FRANCE

A French hospital which has retested old samples from pneumonia patients discovered that it treated a man who had Covid-19 as early as December 27th, nearly a month before the French government confirmed its first cases.

Yves Cohen, head of resuscitation at the Avicenne and Jean Verdier hospitals in the northern suburbs of Paris, told BFM TV that scientists had retested samples from 24 patients treated in December and January who tested negative for the flu.

“Of the 24, we had one who was positive for Covid-19 on December 27th,” he told the news channel on Sunday.

The samples had all initially been collected to detect flu using PCR tests, the same genetic screening process that can also be used to detect the presence of the novel coronavirus in patients infected at the time the sample is collected.

Each sample was retested several times to ensure there were no errors, he added. Neither Cohen nor his team were immediately available for comment on Monday.

France, which has seen almost 25,000 people die from the virus since March 1st, confirmed its first three Covid-19 cases on January 24th, including two patients in Paris and another in the southwestern city of Bordeaux.

Cohen said it was too early to know if the patient whose December 27th test was Covid-19 positive is France’s “patient zero”. Knowing who was the first is critical to understanding how the virus spread.

UK

Taxpayers are paying the wages of 6.3 million workers under the Government’s furlough scheme, at a cost of £8 billion (€930bn).

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “Since the launch, 800,000 employers have used the job retention scheme to furlough 6.3 million jobs.

“That’s to a total value of £8 billion.”

GERMANY

Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday that Germany would contribute €525 million to a global fund-raising push to search for vaccines and for a treatment for the novel coronavirus.

“We will contribute €525 million directly to this pledging conference and we will also continue our obligations for global health overall with around €1.3 billion,” Merkel said.

RUSSIA

The number of coronavirus cases in Russia has risen by 10,581 over the past 24 hours compared with a record of 10,633 on the previous day.

This brought Russia’s nationwide tally to 145,268, the country’s coronavirus crisis response centre said on Monday.

It also reported 76 new deaths from COVID-19, bringing the total death toll in Russia to 1,356.

IRAN

The coronavirus death toll in Iran, one of the hardest hit countries in the Middle East, rose by 74 in the past 24 hours to 6,277, the Health Ministry said on Monday, as mosques were due to reopen in many cities.

The total number of diagnosed cases rose to 98,647, ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said in a statement on state TV.

Iran was due to open mosques in 132 cities on Monday, President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday, part of a broader plan to ease restrictions.

In the areas where mosques reopen, worshippers must maintain social distancing, wear masks and gloves and not stay for more than half an hour, the ISNA news agency reported on Monday.

Iran has already lifted a ban on inter-city trips and malls, with large shopping centres resuming activities despite warnings by some health officials of a new wave of infections.

BANGLADESH

Bangladesh authorities said on Monday they will gradually open up more factories, as well as farms and logistics operations, as they try to diminish the economic impact of a coronavirus lockdown which they extended to May 16th.

Shopping malls were given permission to reopen with shorter than usual hours. The move followed a decision last week to reopen more than 2,000 garment factories that supply global brands, after a month-long shutdown. Much of the rest of the economy remains offline.

The official tally of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus rose by 688 to surpass 10,000, the health ministry said. Some experts are concerned that the real number of cases could be higher in a country of more than 160 million people where many have only limited access to healthcare.

The death toll rose to 182 from 177.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has told government officials that schools and colleges may have to remain closed until September if the situation does not improve.

Garment workers took to the streets in Savar, on the outskirts of the capital Dhaka on Monday, demanding wages.

“We are not getting wages for the last three months. We are literally starving,” said Abdur Rahim, a textile worker.

The government has announced a $588 million package aid for the crucial exports-oriented sector to pay its workers, but garment manufacturers say the funds were not enough to mitigate the crisis.

Some of the world’s biggest clothing companies, including Gap Inc, Zara-owner Inditex and H&M source supplies from Bangladesh.

Bangladesh is home to around 4,000 garment factories employing 4.1 million workers. Industry groups had warned that the shutdown that began on March 26th and cancellation of orders could cost the country $6 billion in export revenue this financial year.

Competitors such as Vietnam, China and Cambodia have already resumed operations.

PORTUGAL

As Portugal slowly started to ease its lockdown measures imposed to fight the coronavirus on Monday, hairdresser Cleonice Caldeira reopened her tiny beauty salon in the heart of Lisbon but her business may now face a long road to recovery.

“It’s complicated but we have to move on,” 48-year-old Caldeira told Reuters while wearing a mask and a plastic face shield to cut the hair of her second customer of the day.

After a six-week lockdown when people were urged to stay indoors, and most non-essential services were shut, a three-phase plan began on Monday to open up different sectors every 15 days, starting with hairdressers, small neighbourhood shops, car dealerships and bookshops.

But businesses must follow strict safety and capacity restrictions.

At hairdressers, for instance, staff members must wear protective equipment, hand sanitiser must be available and customers are only allowed in with an appointment.

The use of masks is now obligatory in enclosed public spaces like supermarkets and on public transport, with rule-breakers risking fines of up to €350. Remote working is still recommended where possible, and gatherings must be limited to 10 people.

Due to the tough rules still in place, businesses are gearing up for the challenges ahead.

Portugal has so far reported 25,525 cases of the coronavirus and 1,063 deaths, a significantly lower toll compared to other countries, including hard-hit neighbouring Spain.

If the spread continues to slow, bigger stores, restaurants, museums and coffee shops will reopen on May 18th but at reduced capacity.

ICELAND

High schools, hair salons, dentists and other businesses across Iceland are reopening after six weeks of lockdown, after the North Atlantic nation managed to tame its coronavirus outbreak.

Iceland has confirmed 1,799 cases of the virus, but just 10 people have died. The number of new Covid-19 cases each day has fallen from 106 at the peak of the outbreak to single digits — even, on some days, zero.

Iceland’s success reflects decisive action by authorities, who used a rigorous policy of testing and tracking to find and isolate infected people, even when they had no symptoms. Even so, Iceland’s chief epidemiologist, Thorolfur Gudnason, said: “I didn’t expect the recovery to be this fast.”

MALAYSIA

Many business sectors reopened in parts of Malaysia as prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin's government sought to reach a balance between curbing the virus and reviving the hard-hit economy.

But the move has split public opinion amid fears that the sudden reopening of economic activities could spark a new wave of infection.

Nine of the country’s 13 states, including the richest state Selangor, either refused to reopen or restricted the list of businesses that can operate. Mass gatherings and interstate travel remain banned. Virus cases have dropped sharply in recent weeks but a slight rise of 227 infections was reported over the weekend. Malaysia has confirmed 6,298 cases, with 105 deaths.

INDIA

India has relaxed some lockdown restrictions even as the pace of infection has slightly accelerated.

On Monday some economic activities resumed after a near-total five-week halt.

Normal life, albeit with masks, social distancing and stringent hygiene standards, has started to return in low-risk areas, while constraints on movement and work continued elsewhere in the country.

India has about 42,500 virus cases, 11,706 recoveries and 1,373 deaths, and had tested more than a million samples by Monday. But at 758 tests per million, India is among the countries testing the lowest fraction of their population. And experts warn that the virus has yet to peak.

CHINA

China reported three new virus cases, all brought from overseas, and no new deaths.

Just 481 people remain in hospitals with about 1,000 under monitoring and isolation for appearing to have the virus or for having tested positive but without showing symptoms.

China has reported a total of 4,633 deaths from Covid-19 among 82,880 cases.

THAILAND

Businesses reopening in Bangkok on Monday after weeks of near lockdown were taking intense precautions to prevent new outbreaks of the coronavirus.

One restaurant placed home-made plastic barriers between tables to ensure customers maintained distance.

A hair salon could be mistaken for a medical ward, with stylists wearing goggles and plastic face shields and scrubs-style protective gowns.

For the foreseeable future, such scenes will be normal in the city where business is just getting going again now that new coronavirus cases have sharply reduced.

At the Hanji restaurant, which serves Taiwanese-style hot pot dishes, plastic screens had been set up between tables in line with government orders to keep customers two metres apart.

Thailand in January was the first country outside China to report a case of the new coronavirus that since swept the globe, infecting 3.5 million and killing 460,000.

The Southeast Asian country has so far managed to hold its own cases down to 2,987, with a total of 54 deaths, but officials warn that reopening should be done carefully to avoid a new outbreak.

VIETNAM

Students across Vietnam started returning to classrooms on Monday after being closed for three months.

The schools require masks and temperature checks among measures to minimise the risk of outbreaks.

Vietnam has confirmed 271 cases of Covid-19. It has not reported a new case in the community for nearly three weeks.

All educational institutions were closed at the beginning of February when the first infections of coronavirus were reported in the country. All teaching activities were moved online. Last month, the country imposed travel restrictions and closed businesses for three weeks to contain the spread of the virus.-AP/Reuters