Wednesday, April 29, 2020

WEDNESDAY APRIL 29 - CORONAVIRUS GLOBAL UPDATE

Cyprus Mail 29 April 2020 - Reuters News Service


Wednesday-8.25 : More than 3,146,982 people have been infected across the world and over 218,179 have died but at the same time 961,860 people have recovered.
THE PANDEMIC IN NUMBERS
COUNTRYINFECTED CASESDEATHS DUE TO VIRUS
CYPRUS83715
USA1,035,76559,266
SPAIN232,12823,822
ITALY201,50527,359
FRANCE165,91123,660
UNITED KINGDOM161,14521,678
GERMANY159,9126,314
All the latest news in brief as it happens
11.37 Beijing city govt to lower COVID-19 emergency response level

Beijing’s municipal government said on Wednesday it will lower its COVID-19 emergency response level effective as of 0000 hours on Thursday, removing quarantine requirements for some people arriving from other low-risk parts of the country.
The decision by Beijing to lower its emergency response measures to level II from level I comes on the same day China announced that the parliament will begin its key annual session in the capital on May 22.
11.36 Poland to reopen hotels and shopping malls on May 4 – PM
Poland will reopen hotels and shopping malls on May 4 while it will consider reopening pre-schools on May 6, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Wednesday, in a move to ease restrictions imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Poland started relaxing some curbs earlier in April, saying they were costly for the economy. It has reopened forests and parks and eased rules on the number of customers in shops.
11.20 Azerbaijan to keep its borders closed till end of May over coronavirus
Azerbaijan will keep its borders closed until May 31 to help contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, the government said on Wednesday.
The former Soviet republic in the South Caucasus has so far recorded 1,717 coronavirus cases and 22 deaths from the virus.
11.15 Airbus Q1 profit plunges as coronavirus crisis starts to bite
Airbus on Wednesday posted a 49% slump in first-quarter core profit and called for an industry-wide campaign to restore confidence in flying after the coronavirus pandemic triggered the “gravest crisis the aerospace industry has ever known”.
Europe’s largest aerospace group also highlighted plans to save cash after gushing 8 billion euros in the first quarter, including a record 3.6-billion-euro fine to settle corruption investigations in Britain, France and the United States.
“All nature of costs are now being reviewed,” CEO Guillaume Faury told analysts.
11.14 Philippines’ coronavirus infections breach 8,000 mark
The Philippines’ health ministry said on Wednesday that confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in the country have risen to more than 8,000.
In a bulletin, the health ministry recorded 254 new infections, 28 additional deaths and 48 more recoveries. It brought the total cases to 8,212, deaths to 558 and recoveries to 1,023.
11.08 Turkey extends closure of schools to end-May over coronavirus
Turkey has extended the closure of schools until the end of May as part of its measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus, Education Minister Ziya Selcuk said on Wednesday.
Ankara announced the initial closure of schools on March 12 after it reported its first case of COVID-19 and now has nearly 115,000 cases with a death toll of nearly 3,000. Selcuk made the announcement at a news conference.
10.52 Russia’s coronavirus case tally nears 100,000 milestone
Russia on Wednesday reported 5,841 new cases of the novel coronavirus, bringing its overall nationwide case tally to 99,399.
The official nationwide death toll reached 972 on Wednesday after 108 people with the virus died in the last 24 hours, Russia’s coronavirus crisis response centre said.
10.50 Saudi foreign reserves fall at fastest in at least two decades
Saudi Arabia’s central bank foreign reserves fell in March at their fastest rate in at least 20 years and to their lowest since 2011, while the kingdom slipped into a $9 billion budget deficit in the first quarter as oil revenues collapsed.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, is facing an unprecedented challenge this year as oil prices have plumbed historic lows.
At the same time, measures to contain the spread of the new coronavirus are likely to curb the pace and the scale of sweeping economic reforms launched by Crown Price Mohammed bin Salman.
10.45 Russia expects up to 15% drop in oil output in 2020 
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak on Wednesday said the country’s oil output could fall by up to 15% this year, Interfax news agency reported, representing its first annual decline since 2008.
Novak cited this month’s deal between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other large oil producers to cut their combined oil output by almost 10 million barrels per day (bpd) in May and June to combat slumping prices in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
Russian oil output <C-RU-OUT> will decline to between 480 million and 500 million tonnes (9.6 million bpd to 10 million bpd), from 2019’s post-Soviet high of 560 million tonnes, Novak said.
10.35 Thousands of British workers will need to gather the harvest
Thousands of British workers will need to help gather the harvest as seasonal workers from other parts of Europe are unable to travel due to the coronavirus lockdown, the environment minister said on Wednesday.
British Environment Secretary George Eustice said that in a normal year around 30,000 people come from mainly the European Union to do seasonal agricultural work, though only a third are here now.
“We will need a significant number of British people, in particular those who have been furloughed they have the chance if they want,” Eustice told BBC radio.
10.30 Singapore confirms 690 new coronavirus cases
Singapore’s health ministry confirmed 690 more coronavirus infections on Wednesday, taking total cases there to 15,641.
Most of the new cases are among migrant workers living in dormitories in the city-state, which has among the highest number of coronavirus infections in Asia.
10.24 London stocks gain as global economies reopen, StanChart jumps
UK stocks rose for a third straight day on Wednesday as investors looked past a round of dour quarterly earnings reports on optimism over a revival in business activity after several countries began easing coronavirus-induced shutdowns.
Standard Chartered PLC said it expected virus-battered economies to recover later this year, even as it beefed up to cover potential loan defaults due to the health crisis. The lender’s shares jumped 5.9% and lifted other bank stocks.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 was up 0.6%, hovering near seven-week highs, while the domestically focussed mid-cap index also added 0.6%.
9.56 Japan’s Abe says impossible to hold Olympics unless pandemic contained
It will be impossible to host the Tokyo Olympic Games next year unless the coronavirus pandemic is contained, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Wednesday.
“The Olympic Games must be held in a way that shows the world has won its battle against the coronavirus pandemic,” Abe told parliament.
“Otherwise, it will be hard to hold the Games.”
9.18 Asia shares hit 7-week high, oil rallies as economies slowly re-open
Asian shares climbed to a near two-month peak on Wednesday as investors took heart from easing coronavirus lockdowns in some parts of the world, better-than-expected corporate earnings and a welcome rebound in oil prices.
Futures pointed to a strong start for Europe and Wall Street with E-Minis for the S&P 500 up more than 1% helped by forecast beating revenues from Alphabet Inc’s Google.
Eurostoxx 50 futures added 0.4% while futures for Germany’s Dax index and those for London’s FTSE were each 0.7% higher.
9.14 Next sales slump after stores shuttered in coronavirus lockdown
British clothing retailer Next said on Wednesday total product sales in its latest quarter crashed 41%, reflecting the closure of all its stores in the coronavirus lockdown and the temporary shutdown of its online operations.
Next said store sales plunged 52% in the 13 weeks to April 25, its fiscal first quarter, while online sales were down 32%.
The group said the fall off in sales to date was faster and steeper than anticipated in its March stress test and it was now modelling lower sales for both the first and second half of the year.
Research from Germany and Italy suggests that footballers and other athletes face a particular risk of the coronavirus infecting their lungs, raising major questions over attempts to restart professional soccer.
The research, produced by Italian immunologists and lung specialists based at institutes in Berlin, Rome and Verona, suggests that due to strenuous exercise, elite athletes are more likely to inhale virus particles and direct them to the lower areas of the lung.
8.47 A third of German firms can survive for max 3 months with longer restrictions – Ifo
Some 29.2% of German companies think they would survive for a maximum of three months if the coronavirus-related restrictions remain in place for a longer period while 52.7% said they would survive for a maximum of six months, the Ifo institute said.
“These are worrying figures that point to a wave of bankruptcies ahead,” Klaus Wohlrabe, an economist at Ifo, said of the survey.
8.37 Hotels in Poland to be open for summer holidays – govt spokesman
Hotels in Poland will be open for summer holidays, government spokesman Piotr Muller told state radio on Wednesday, while adding that the novel coronavirus infections were still on the rise in the country.
On Wednesday, the Polish government is set to announce its decision with regards to re-opening some businesses that were closed until now due to the pandemic.
Summer holidays are traditionally held over July and August in Poland, but it is not entirely clear if that will be the case this year. The government has just extended school closures until May 24
8.33 City of Beijing may ease quarantine rules as early as Thursday 
The city of Beijing plans to ease quarantine rules for some domestic travellers from low-risk areas in China as soon as Thursday, according to two sources familiar with the situation, as the Chinese capital prepares for a major political gathering.
People arriving from elsewhere in China will no longer be required to be quarantined for two weeks unless they come from high-risk areas such as Heilongjiang in the north and some parts of Guangdong in the southeast, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the information has not been disclosed publicly.
7.59 Thailand reports nine new coronavirus cases, no more deaths
Thailand reported on Wednesday nine new coronavirus infections but no deaths, taking to 2,947 cases and 54 deaths its tally since the outbreak began in January.
It was the third day that new infections stayed in the single digits, said Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesman of the government’s Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration.
Six of the new cases were linked to earlier cases, two had no known links, and the ninth involved a person who tested positive but awaits infection tracing, he added.
7.56 Germany to extend travel warning for tourist trips abroad to mid-June – report
The German cabinet will on Wednesday extend a travel warning for all tourism trips abroad until at least June 14, magazine Der Spiegel reported, saying that a Foreign Ministry document to that effect had been agreed with other ministries.
7.14 China embassy accuses Australia of petty tricks in coronavirus dispute
China accused Australia of “petty tricks” on Wednesday in an intensifying dispute over Canberra’s push for an international inquiry into the coronavirus outbreak that could affect diplomatic and economic ties between the countries.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said his proposed inquiry into how the coronavirus developed and spread would not be targeted at China but was needed given COVID-19 had killed more than 200,000 people and shut down much of the global economy.
7.10 Germany reports 1,304 more coronavirus cases, 202 more deaths
Germany on Wednesday reported 1,304 more cases of the novel coronavirus while the number of deaths rose by 202 compared to the previous day, data from the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases showed.
Europe’s most populous country now has a total of 157,641 confirmed cases and 6,115 deaths, according to the tally.
6.50 Mexico hospitals filling up with coronavirus patients
At least five of Mexico City’s largest private hospitals have filled up with coronavirus patients and have no room for new ones, doctors and hospital workers said on Tuesday, though more than 100 other medical centers have available beds.
The ABC medical center, Medica Sur, Hospital Español and two of the Angeles group of hospitals were no longer receiving patients with COVID-19, the disease transmitted by the novel coronavirus.
5.30 Australia says COVID-19 inquiry is “reasonable”, not targeted at any country
Australia’s calls for an independent inquiry into the origins of COVID-19 is “reasonable” and not targeted at any specific country, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday.
Australian-Chinese bilateral relations have soured in recent weeks after Morrison called for the inquiry into the origins of novel coronavirus.
Morrison insisted his call was not an attempt to criticise China, and while Canberra’s largest trading partner may feel slighted – Australia would continue to press for the review.
3.51 Saudi Arabia’s Q1 budget deficit at about $9 bln
Saudi Arabia’s budget deficit in the first quarter of 2020 stood at 34.107 billion Saudi riyals ($9.07 billion), the finance ministry said on Wednesday.
Total revenues in the first quarter reached 192.072 billion riyals, down 22% from the same period last year, the ministry said in a statement on its website.
3.27 Mainland China reports 22 new coronavirus cases vs 6 a day earlier
Mainland China reported 22 new coronavirus cases for April 28, up from 6 reported a day earlier, putting its total number of COVID-19 infections to date at 82,858.
The National Health Commission said in a statement on Wednesday that the number of imported cases involving travellers from overseas rose to 21 on Tuesday from 3 a day earlier. New asymptomatic cases, involving patients infected with the virus but not showing symptoms, fell to 26 from 40 the previous day.
3.15 Mexico’s registers 1,223 new coronavirus cases, 135 deaths
Mexico’s health ministry reported on Tuesday 1,223 new known coronavirus cases and 135 new deaths, bringing the total to 16,752 cases and 1,569 deaths.
The government has said the real number of infected people is significantly higher than the confirmed cases.
Three U.S. children infected with the coronavirus are being treated for a rare inflammatory syndrome that appears similar to one that has raised concerns by doctors in Britain, Italy and Spain, a specialist treating the patients told Reuters.
All three – who range in age from 6 months to 8 years – have undergone treatment at Columbia University Medical Center in New York, and all had fever and inflammation of the heart and the gut.
“Right now, we’re at the very beginning of trying to understand what that represents,” Columbia’s Dr. Mark Gorelik told Reuters.
00.12 Matches should not be played until September says FIFA medical chief
FIFA’s medical committee chairman Michel D’Hooghe has said football should not be played until at least the start of September to limit the spread of the new coronavirus and when it does resume that yellow cards be handed out for spitting.
“If there is one moment where absolute priority should be given to medical matters, then it is this one. This is not a matter of money but of life and death,” D’Hooghe told Sky Sports News in an interview on Tuesday.
What happened on Tuesday, April 28
EUROPE
  • The death toll from COVID-19 in British hospitals rose by 586 to 21,678 as of 1600 GMT on Monday, health secretary Matt Hancock said
  • Deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic in Italy climbed by 382, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the total number of people infected since the start of the outbreak topped 200,000
  • Confirmed cases in Germany rose by 1,144 and the death toll by 163. Total cases stood at 156,337 and the death count at 5,913 * Spain recorded 301 fatalities from the novel coronavirus overnight, down from 331 on the previous day, the health ministry said
  • The coronavirus death toll in France rose by 367 to 23,660, while the number of confirmed cases was up 1,520 at 129,859, the health ministry said
  • Turkey’s COVID-19 death toll rose by 92 in the last 24 hours to 2,992, Health Ministry data showed, continuing a downward trend * New coronavirus cases in Russia rose to 6,411, a record daily rise, bringing its nationwide tally to 93,558
  • The Netherlands’ number of confirmed coronavirus cases has risen by 171 to 38,416, health authorities said on Tuesday, with 48 new deaths
  • The Czech Republic has reported its lowest daily rise in new coronavirus cases in more than six weeks as it eases out of a lockdown imposed to curb the spread of infection
  • Slovenia could rack up a general government deficit of 8.1% of GDP due to the economic shock from the pandemic, the government said, after running a small surplus or a balanced budget for the past three years
  • The Slovak government approved shifting 1.2 billion euros from unspent EU funds to compensate for the coronavirus impact
AMERICAS
  • U.S. cases of the novel coronavirus topped 1 million on Tuesday, having doubled in 18 days, and making up one-third of all infections in the world, according to a Reuters tally
  • The U.S. Treasury Department will audit every loan for more than $2 million given under the Paycheck Protection Program for businesses hurt by the coronavirus fallout, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said
  • U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that China could have stopped the coronavirus before it swept the globe and that his administration was conducting “serious investigations” into what happened
  • Trump plans to order U.S. meat processing plants facing concerns about coronavirus outbreaks to stay open to protect the country’s food supply, a senior administration official said
  • Quebec, the Canadian province hit hardest by the virus outbreak, is set on Tuesday to announce plans for restarting its economy, paving the way for companies like Bombardier Inc to gradually reopen key facilities
  • Mexico reported 852 new cases and 83 new deaths on Monday
  • Peruvian copper mine Antamina, owned by BHP and Glencore, reported 210 cases
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
  • Mainland China reported 6 new cases for April 27, up from 3 a day earlier, bringing total infections to 82,836
  • Singapore’s health ministry confirmed 528 more coronavirus infections, the smallest daily rise in almost two weeks, taking the city-state’s tally of cases to 14,951
  • More than 2,200 Indonesians have died with acute symptoms of COVID-19 but were not recorded as victims, a Reuters review of data from 16 of the country’s 34 provinces showed
  • India was nearing 30,000 coronavirus infections, second only to China in Asia, a steady rise that would make it difficult to lift a nearly six-week lockdown that ends this weekend, health officials and some government leaders said
  • Thailand reported seven more cases and two new deaths. The country’s cabinet has approved 180 billion baht worth of additional cash handouts to help protect farmers and workers
  • Malaysian health authorities reported 31 new coronavirus cases, raising the cumulative total to 5,851
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
  • The death toll in Iran from the coronavirus pandemic rose by 71 in the past 24 hours to 5,877, a health ministry spokesman said
  • Egypt registered 260 new infections of the novel coronavirus and 22 deaths, the highest daily rise in both figures The implementation of a mammoth African free trade agreement will not begin on July 1 as planned
  • Morocco’s planning agency has revised downward the country’s growth forecast for the second quarter to -6.8% year-on-year from an earlier estimate of -1.8%
ECONOMIC FALLOUT


  •  The S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes eased on Tuesday as scientists warned of an increase in U.S. coronavirus deaths if states lifted lockdowns too quickly, while healthcare stocks slumped after a sales warning from Merck
  • U.S. consumer confidence tumbled to a near six-year low in April
  • Asian shares dipped into the red, erasing earlier gains, as a renewed decline in oil prices overshadowed optimism about the easing of coronavirus-related restrictions seen globally
  • Japan’s March jobless rate rose to its highest in a year, while job availability slipped to a more than three-year low
  • South Korea President Moon Jae-in said the deepening impact from the pandemic will worsen going forward and massive job losses are of his particular concern
  • A recession in Singapore’s economy could be deeper than forecast, its central bank said.
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