More than 1.6 million people have been
reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and
102,151 have died, according to a Reuters tally, as of 0200
GMT.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
EUROPE
* British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is making very good
Experts concerned about sleeper Covid-19 infections which could be devastating
How to tell the difference between pneumonia and flu
Covid-19 in SA: Working in the place I worked to pay for
The coronavirus pandemic has halted tourism, and animals are benefiting from it
OPINION: A month that changed sport forever
Covid-19 calls for a paradigm shift that will change tourism for the better
World hunger could double as coronavirus disrupts food supplies
No league is worth human life, says football chief Infantino
progress in his recovery from Covid-19, his office said on
Saturday, as his health minister said the peak of the outbreak
in Britain had not yet been reached.
* The number of coronavirus deaths in Spain fell for a third
consecutive day, with 510 fatalities reported in the past 24
hours - the smallest overnight increase since March
23.
* The number of people who have died in France jumped by nearly
987 to 13,197 as nursing home deaths swelled, but fewer people
were in intensive care as the effect of nationwide confinement
started to show.
* Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte extended a nationwide
lockdown until May 3, though he said a few types of shops would
be allowed to re-open next week.
* Germany's number of confirmed infections rose by 4,133 on
Saturday to 117,658, data from the Robert Koch Institute showed.
A shopper has his temperature scanned as he stands in a long line waiting to enter at the Esselunga supermarket in San Donato, in the outskirts of Milan, Italy. Picture: Claudio Furlan/LaPresse via AP
AMERICAS
* Apple Inc and Alphabet Inc's Google said they will work
together to create contact tracing technology that aims to slow
the spread of the coronavirus by allowing users to opt into
logging other phones they have been near.
* Political leaders and health experts urged Americans
celebrating Good Friday and the Easter weekend to avoid church
gatherings and observe the holidays at home as the US death
toll surpassed 18 600.
* Uruguay started to repatriate 112 Australians and New
Zealanders from a cruise ship hit by coronavirus and stranded in
the La Plata River near the capital of Montevideo since March
27, the government said.
* Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro took to the streets of
Brasilia on Friday, drawing crowds and greeting followers in his
latest public pushback against social isolation measures to
fight the outbreak.
* Chile will start handing out certificates to people who have
recovered that will exempt them from adhering to quarantines or
other restrictions.
Police patrol on the promenade after the coronavirus outbreak and lockdown in Brighton, England. Picture: Alberto Pezzali/AP
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
* Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has decided to extend a
nationwide lockdown, the chief minister of Delhi state said on
Saturday, without disclosing how long the extension would be
for.
* China reported on Saturday a rise in infections, mostly in
travellers arriving from abroad, as doctors in the central city
of Wuhan, where the virus initially emerged, warned its
behaviour was still not well-understood.
* Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Saturday called for
citizens across Japan to avoid evening spots like bars and
restaurants, NHK reported, in a ratcheting up of social
distancing guidance.
* Some Catholic penitents flagellated themselves and prayed
outside closed churches in the Philippines on Good Friday,
despite strict orders for people to stay indoors.
Visitors wear face masks to protect themselves against the spread of the new coronavirus at Taipei Children's Amusement Park in Taiwan. Picture: Chiang Ying-ying/AP
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* The World Health Organization (WHO) warned countries on Friday
to be cautious about lifting restrictions and voiced alarm it
was taking hold in Africa.
* President Hassan Rouhani urged Iranians to respect health
protocols to guard against the new coronavirus as "low-risk"
economic activities resumed in most of the country on Saturday,
state news agency IRNA reported.
* Yemen reported its first case on Friday, as aid groups try to
prepare for an outbreak where war has shattered the health
system and spread hunger and disease.
Vicente Mata, a 41-year-old homeless man, begs for money on an empty Estafeta street during lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus, in Pamplona, northern Spain. Picture: Alvaro Barrientos/AP
ECONOMIC FALLOUT
* US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told major airlines on
Friday he wants them to repay some of the $25 billion in cash
grants the U.S. Congress approved last month to cover payroll
costs as airlines weather an unprecedented crisis, three
industry officials briefed on the matter told
Reuters.
* The pandemic will trigger the worst economic fallout since the
1930s Great Depression in 2020, with only a partial recovery
seen in 2021, the head of the International Monetary Fund said.
* The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits in the
last three weeks has blown past 15 million, with weekly new
claims topping 6 million for the second straight time.
* European Union finance ministers agreed on half-a-trillion
euros worth of support for their economies but left open the
question of how to finance recovery in the bloc headed for a
steep recession.
