Australia heads for lowest virus count in 3 months

SYDNEY: Australia looked set to record its lowest daily increase in new coronavirus cases in three months on Sunday as a hard lockdown in the city of Melbourne brought the country’s virus epicenter down sharply.

The second-most populous state Victoria, of which Melbourne is the capital, reported 14 new infections in the 24 hours to Sunday morning, down from 21 new cases the day prior and its lowest since June 19. That put Victoria, which has spent months under lockdown to slow a second wave of infections, on track to meet a target of keeping average daily increases below 50 by Sept. 28 when the authorities have said they may lift restrictions. Australia’s biggest state New South Wales, which has Sydney as the capital, reported two new cases, while the Queensland state also reported two, bringing the national total to 18, the lowest national tally since June 23. The five other states and territories had not reported daily case numbers by Sunday morning, but have reported no increases most days for weeks.

“There will of course always be debates about timing and whether we’re on schedule, ahead of schedule, all of those things, (but) ultimately these numbers are cause for great optimism and positivity,” Victorian state Premier Daniel Andrews said.

Andrews, who has faced political pressure domestically for his hardline approach to enforcing restrictions of movement, invoked recent spikes in infection rates in Europe as a warning about the possible effect of exiting the lockdown too soon.