The European Union set up a unit of
investigators to tackle an expected surge in financial crime in
the economic downturn triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic and
crack down on defrauding of state subsidies.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* More than 6.66 million people have been reported infected
with the new coronavirus globally and 390,648 have died, a
Reuters tally showed as of 0929 GMT on Friday.
EUROPE
* An influential medical journal article that found
hydroxychloroquine increased the risk of death in COVID-19
patients was retracted on Thursday, adding to controversy around
a drug championed by US President Donald Trump.
* Austria almost doubled the amount of debt it plans to
issue this year as coronavirus-related emergency aid has helped
drive up its borrowing needs by well over 20 billion euros.
* The Czech Republic agreed to fully open its borders with
neighbours Austria and Germany and allow unrestricted travel to
and from Hungary from noon.
AMERICAS
* A top US health official cautioned on Thursday that
protests sweeping across the country could increase the spread
of the coronavirus and that participants should "highly
consider" getting tested.
* The number of coronavirus deaths in Brazil blew past
Italy's toll on Thursday, while Mexico reported a record number
of new cases, as regional leaders in Latin America push to end
quarantine measures and kick their economies back into gear.
* Argentina extended a mandatory lockdown in Buenos Aires,
the capital, and some other parts of the country until June 28,
as confirmed coronavirus cases continue to rise, surpassing
20,000 earlier in the day.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* The Bank of Japan is likely to maintain its projection
that the economy will gradually recover in the latter half of
this year, four sources familiar with its thinking said,
heightening the chance it will forgo bold monetary easing steps
at this month's rate review.
* Singapore plans to give a wearable device that will
identify people who had interacted with carriers of coronavirus
to all of its 5.7 million residents, in what could become one of
the most comprehensive contact tracing efforts globally.
* Beijing's municipal government said it will lower its
Covid-19 emergency response from level II to level III effective
from Saturday, state media reported.
* Thailand is positioning itself as a trusted destination
for international tourists after travel restrictions ease,
capitalising on its relative success in containing the
coronavirus outbreak, industry officials say.
* Malaysia's prime minister unveiled an additional economic
stimulus package worth 35 billion ringgit ($8.22 billion) in a
bid to revitalise industries.
* Indian drugmaker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries
said it was testing a plant-derived drug, AQCH, for the
potential treatment of COVID-19 as part of a mid-stage trial,
with results expected by October.
* The sparkle has returned to the Yamuna river flowing
through India's capital of New Delhi, as industrial activity was
brought to a halt late in March.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said he decided to cancel
a weekend lockdown announced late on Thursday after a public
backlash.
* Turkey could extend a three-month ban on layoffs that was
imposed in April, Hurriyet newspaper reported, citing unnamed
officials.
* Air traffic resumed at Israel's principal airport after a
strike by workers demanding compensation for wages lost due to
the coronavirus crisis forced a brief shutdown, an airport
spokeswoman said.
* South Africa has dehorned dozens of rhinos in three
popular game parks, aiming to prevent armed poachers taking
advantage of the post-Covid-19 crash in tourism to kill them for
their horns.
ECONOMIC FALLOUT
* World stocks held their ground near three-month highs as
the euro hit its highest level since March 10, thanks to
Europe's stimulus boost, fuelling hopes for a global
rebound.
* Norway's economy contracted 4.7% in April from March, but
the outlook for the rest of the year now looks better than it
did six weeks ago, Statistics Norway said.
* Germany should return to a balanced budget in the next
legislative period, the economy minister told a magazine.
* Austrian economic output will shrink by 7.2% this year if
there is no second coronavirus wave in the autumn, but even a
resurgence milder than the first outbreak would deepen that to
9.2%, the country's central bank said.
* Spain's calendar-adjusted industrial output registered its
worst contraction ever in April, data from the National
Statistics Institute showed.
* Hungary's industrial output plunged by an annual 36.8% in
April based on preliminary unadjusted data.
* The Philippines' unemployment rate surged to a record
17.7% in April, the statistics agency said.
* Singapore's finance minister said its unemployment rate
could rise to a record of over 100,000 in 2020.