1st wave far from over, warns WHO
People return to the trading floor after a two-month closure
GENEVA/NEWYORK:As South America and South Asia struggle with surging coronavirus cases, a top global health expert is warning that the world is still in the very middle of the outbreak, dampening hopes for a speedy global economic rebound and renewed international travel.
“Right now, we’re not in the second wave. We’re right in the middle of the first wave globally,” said Mike Ryan, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) executive director. “We’re still very much in a phase where the disease is actually on the way up,” Ryan said, pointing to South America and South Asia.
In South America and South Asia, the virus has taken hold in some of the poorest, most densely populated areas.
In Brazil, the WHO warned that before reopening the economy, authorities must have enough testing in place to control the spread of the virus. Brazil has 375,000 coronavirus infections and has counted over 23,000 deaths, but many fear Brazil’s true toll is much higher.
In Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the postponed military parade marking the 75th anniversary of the allied victory in the World War II will take place on June 24.
Putin also said the country has passed the peak of the outbreak. Russia reported a record one-day spike on Tuesday of 174 deaths.
WALL STREET STOCKS SURGE AS NYSE OPENS
Wall Street stocks surged early on Tuesday on optimism about coronavirus vaccines as the New York Stock Exchange resumed physical floor trading for the first time since late March.
About 30 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 2.4% at 25,038.94. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 1.7% to 3,007.76, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 1.2% to 9,434.99.
The gains came after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, wearing a mask, rang the opening bell to signal the start of the day for traders, also clad in masks and separated by plexiglas.
The NYSE, which closed on March 23 as coronavirus cases were soaring in New York, is ramping up slowly with only a fraction of the normal trading staff. Traders are required to wear masks and have their temperatures taken and must respect social distancing rules.