in-cyprus 2 June 2020 -Josephine Koumettou
Latest update: 02/06/2020 08:03
U.S. health experts and government officials warned that large street protests over racial inequities and excessive police force could worsen the spread of the coronavirus.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* More than 6.27 million people have been reported infected with the coronavirus globally and 374,612 have died, a Reuters tally showed by 0258 GMT on Tuesday.
* For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread, click here.
EUROPE
* British government ministers are aiming to replace coronavirus quarantine for people arriving at airports by the end of June, with so-called air bridges being considered as an option, the Telegraph newspaper reported.
* Slovakia will undo more coronavirus restrictions from Wednesday, including opening indoor sports centres and pools, as the country with one of the world’s lowest death rates from the outbreak moves ahead with reopening.
* Russia will start giving patients its first drug approved to treat COVID-19 next week, its state financial backer told Reuters.
* Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
* World Health Organization experts and a range of other scientists said on Monday there was no evidence to support an assertion by a high-profile Italian doctor that the coronavirus has been losing potency.
AMERICAS
* In a single Brazilian state, some 2,400 meat plant workers have caught the coronavirus, officials said.
* Eli Lilly and Co said first set of patients have been dosed in an early-stage trial to test its potential COVID-19 treatment, in the world’s first study of an antibody treatment against the disease.
* Colombia issued new measures to control the spread in three of its most affected cities, including capital Bogota, as the rest of the country prepares for quarantine rules to start lifting.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* China will fully implement its commitment to nationally determined contributions on climate change under the Paris climate agreement despite the coronavirus outbreak, the country’s environment ministry said on Tuesday.
* The Japanese Health Ministry said it has allowed saliva-based coronavirus tests to help boost the number of polymerase chain reaction tests.
* South Korea is testing a new quick response code system this week to log visitors at high-risk entertainment facilities, restaurants and churches in a bid to track coronavirus cases.
* Hong Kong confirmed its first locally transmitted cases in more than two weeks, fuelling concerns over its spread as restrictions on movement are relaxed.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Nigeria will relax coronavirus restrictions on places of worship from Tuesday, the chairman of the presidential task force for COVID-19 said.
* Iran could face a second, stronger wave of infections if people ignore guidance and social distancing rules, its health minister said.
* Turkey reopened restaurants, cafes and parks on Monday and lifted inter-city travel curbs.
* Rwanda’s ministry of health on Sunday reported the East African nation’s first death caused by the new coronavirus.
ECONOMIC FALLOUT
* European manufacturers may be over the worst of a coronavirus-driven downturn, but Asia’s pain deepened in May due to a slump in global trade, surveys show.
* Japan’s government will submit to parliament early next week a second extra budget to fund a new $1.1 trillion stimulus package, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said.
* Hong Kong’s retail sales fell by 36.1% in April from a year earlier, hammered by the new coronavirus that has sent many retailers to the brink of collapse.
* Germany is working on a stimulus package worth 75-80 billion euros ($83-89 billion) to support economic recovery after the pandemic, weekly Bild am Sonntag reported.
* The International Monetary Fund said on Monday it has increased financing access for Honduras to about $531 million, immediately releasing $233 million, more than five times the amount initially approved.
(Reuters)
Pictured: Office workers wearing face masks take their lunch break at the central business district amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Singapore June 2, 2020. REUTERS/Edgar Su
