Epidemic shows signs of abating

Beijing, March 4: The

Covid-19 infections showed signs of receding in China with 38 new fatalities, taking the total number of deaths to 2,981, Chinese health officials have said even as countries grappled to contain the fastspreading deadly virus that has claimed over 3,100 lives globally.

By the end of Tuesday,

2,981 people died of the

Covid-19 and a total of

80,270 confirmed cases of the virus were reported in China, National Health Commission (NHC) reported on Tuesday.

The death toll due to the deadly disease across the world mounted to 3,123 and confirmed cases surpassed 91,783, official media here reported. NHC received reports of 119 new confirmed cases in China on Tuesday from 31 provincial-level regions and Xinjiang, including 115 from Hubei province and its capital Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus.

Outside Hubei, only four cases were reported on Tuesday, down from 890 on February 3, the NHC said, highlighting that the cases have been falling in the rest of the country.

2nd case in EU Brussels institutions

Brussels, March 4: A second case of novel Covid-19 has been confirmed among the staff at European Union institutions in Brussels, a European official said on Wednesday, just hours after the first. The victim works in a security unit of the European Council, and is believed to have been in contact with a previous case in Belgium, he said.

We have entered a phase that will last weeks and, undoubtedly, months EMMANUEL MACRON

French President