News Desk:
Death tolls from Covid-19 soared globally 3,35,2198 with total number of cases 52,26,101 in 210 countries and territories while recovered 21,02,256, according to worldometer.
Deaths are still mounting in the US, with the total 96,377 while infected 16,21,727, and Trump ordered flags at federal buildings be flown at half-staff for three days for the victims.
Another 2.43 million Americans were put out of work last week, the Labor Department said Thursday, bringing the total of newly jobless to 38.6 million since lockdowns were put in place.
The Republican incumbent also talked about
reopening places of worship, something he had initially hoped would be done by Easter Sunday, saying it was important to the nation’s healing.
President Donald Trump pressed for a further reopening of the United States as job losses mount from coronavirus shutdowns, while China’s premier warned of “immense” economic challenges even as the Asian giant emerges from the worst of the pandemic.
Calls to kickstart the world’s two largest economies came as large parts of Europe continued to resume normal life as the crisis there abates, with more shops opening and beaches welcoming tourists.
But the lifting of restrictions in some places comes despite virus cases passing five million globally, with the disease continuing its march in Latin America and Russia.
Trump, with an eye on his re-election prospects in November, made it clear he hoped more US state governors would move towards a loosening of anti-virus restrictions.
“We did the right thing but we now want to get going… you’ll break the country if you don’t,” he told African-American leaders in Michigan.
Italy recorded 156 new deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic on Thursday, against 161 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the daily tally of new cases also declined slightly to 642 from 665 on Wednesday.
The total death toll since the outbreak came to light on Feb. 21 now stands at 32,486, the agency said, the third highest in the world after those of the United States and Britain.
The number of confirmed cases amounts to 228,006, the sixth highest global tally behind those of the United States, Russia, Spain, Britain and Brazil.
People registered as currently carrying the illness fell to 60,960 from 62,752 the day before.
There were 640 people in intensive care on Thursday, down from 676 on Wednesday, maintaining a long-running decline. Of those originally infected, 134,560 were declared recovered, against 132,282 a day earlier.
The agency said 2.079 million people had been tested for the virus as of Thursday, against 2.038 million on Wednesday, out of a population of around 60 million.
Spain’s daily death toll from the coronavirus fell below 50 on Thursday for the first time since a lockdown was imposed in mid-March, but the figure excludes deaths in the northeastern region of Catalonia.
Cumulative deaths climbed by 48 to 27,940, while the number of confirmed cases edged up to 233,037, the health ministry said.
Catalan authorities did not update their daily figures due to data-validation problems, the ministry said in a statement, without elaborating on the nature of the problems.
Health Emergency Chief Fernando Simon said officials preferred not to release the Catalan data until they were satisfied with its quality.
“We want to provide the best possible data so people can take solid and informed decisions,” he told a news conference.
Including deaths in Catalonia the daily toll would still be around 50, he added.
At the peak of the outbreak in early April, Spain reported as many as 950 deaths a day. A strict lockdown has helped bring the epidemic under control, prompting authorities to begin lifting restrictions.
Bars and restaurants have reopened their terraces in most of the country, people are allowed out to exercise and some shops can open. But fears of a second wave remain and the government introduced mandatory mask use in public from Thursday.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday secured a razor-thin parliamentary majority to extend the emergency state by two weeks, allowing his government to control further easing.
Support for his left-wing coalition is flagging in parliament and on the streets, with pot-banging protests spreading around the country.
