The highly contagious coronavirus,
which causes a respiratory illness called Covid-19, has caused
entire regions to be placed on lockdown and in some places
soldiers are patrolling the streets to keep consumers and
workers indoors, halting services and production and breaking
supply chains.
DEATHS, INFECTIONS
* 435,470 people have been infected across the world and
more than 19 500 have died, according to a Reuters tally.
EUROPE
* Summer is unlikely to stop the spread of the virus, and every
country in Europe is forecast to run out of intensive care beds
by mid-April unless it acts fast, the European Union's disease
control agency said on Wednesday.
* European Union states need 10 times as much personal
protective equipment and other medical devices than traditional
supply chains can provide, an internal EU document showed on
Wednesday.
* The death toll in northern Italy's Lombardy region has risen
by around 296 in a day to some 4 474, a source familiar with the
data said on Wednesday. If confirmed, it will be the lowest
daily death toll in Lombardy since March 19.
* Italy's trade unions said the government had agreed to shut
more firms to protect workers' safety.
* It would be wrong to read too much into numbers showing a
lower relative rate of deaths in Germany since it is still at
the beginning of the epidemic, a health ministry spokesman said.
* British regulators will take action against any companies
found to be profiteering from the coronavirus emergency, the
prime minister's spokesman said on Wednesday. Britain, which
launched a WhatsApp campaign against misinformation, is to
detail on Thursday how it will help self-employed workers who
risk losing income.
* Prince Charles, the 71-year-old heir to the British throne,
has tested positive and is self isolating in Scotland with mild
symptoms.
* Kosovo's coalition government faces a no-confidence vote in
parliament on Wednesday after a dispute over whether to declare
a state of emergency.
* Russian President Vladimir Putin postponed a nationwide vote
on constitutional changes that would allow him to extend his
rule.
AMERICAS
* The burden caused by Coronavirus accelerated across the United
States on Wednesday beyond New York, California and Washington
state as Louisiana and others faced a severe crush on their
healthcare systems.
* Many of Brazil's 850 000 indigenous people are urging
officials to expel from their lands outsiders who could
introduce the disease.
* Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro dismissed virus "hysteria"
and urged mayors and state governors to roll back lockdown
measures that have brought Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo to near
standstills.
* Mexico temporarily halted the processing of asylum requests
from Tuesday, as its cases climbed to 405.
* An emergency aid package for Canadians facing economic harm
from the outbreak was stalled.
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
* Australia will expand testing, its prime minister said on
Wednesday as Canberra struggles to contain the outbreak.
* Mainland China reported a drop in new cases on Wednesday as
imported infections fell and no locally transmitted infections
were reported.
* Singapore reported 73 new cases of Coronavirus on Wednesday,
the city-state's biggest daily jump.
* India woke up to a sweeping lockdown of its 1.3 billion
people, but the order did not stop crowds of people thronging to
stock up at grocery shops and chemists.
* The Indian government banned the export of a key malaria drug,
as experts test its efficacy in treating patients with Covid-19.
* Thailand recorded 107 new cases on Wednesday, bringing its
total to 934, while South Korea's tally rose to 9 137 with 100
new infections.
* Singapore's government said on Wednesday it was not ruling out
holding a general election during the outbreak.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Israelis were instructed on Wednesday to stay within 100
metres of their homes under tightened restrictions that further
reduced public transport, required employers to check workers
for fever and set sanctions for people who defy rules.
* About half of Iran's government employees were staying at home
on Tuesday as the country's death toll topped 2 000.
* Pakistan is seeking another $1.4 billion loan from the IMF.
* Egypt has declared a two-week curfew, and those who violate
the measure will be penalised under emergency laws, the prime
minister said.
* The Nigerian Army is preparing to forcibly transfer the sick
to hospital and enforce restrictions, and is leasing equipment
for "possible mass burial", according to an army memo seen by
Reuters.
* Congo closed its borders and imposed a state of emergency.
* Mali and Guinea-Bissau reported their first cases on
Wednesday.
ECONOMIC FALLOUT
* A breakneck rebound in world stocks made it past the 10% mark
on Wednesday before more global Coronavirus warnings and fresh
turbulence in commodity markets saw things grind to a
halt.
* Seventy percent of people in G7 countries expect their
household to lose income due to the outbreak, according to a
survey on Wednesday.
* US senators and Trump administration officials agreed on a
massive economic stimulus bill early on Wednesday, with the
Senate set to vote on the $2-trillion package later in the day
and the House of Representatives vote expected soon after.
* Germany, whose economy could contract by as much as 20% this
year, is open to using the European Stability Mechanism to prop
up economies under certain circumstances, Der Spiegel magazine
reported on Wednesday.
* German lawmakers on Wednesday voted to suspend the debt brake
for the first time ever to finance an aid package meant to help
shield Europe's largest economy.
* Venezuela has opened talks with China over possible financial
support to cope with a sharp drop in oil prices and the arrival
of Coronavirus, sources familiar with the negotiations said.
* India is likely to agree an economic stimulus package of more
than $19.6 billion, two sources familiar with the matter told
Reuters.
EVENTS
* The Cannes Film Festival venue is opening its doors to the
town's homeless who have nowhere to go during the lockdown.
* Two Russian cosmonauts and a US astronaut were spending
their final weeks on Earth in quarantine before they are
scheduled to blast off on April 9 for the International Space
Station.