How the rest of the world is dealing with coronavirus

THE coronavirus pandemic has infected almost two million people worldwide and more than 119,000 deaths have been recorded.

Here is the latest on the situation from around the world:

■■ITALY

Book shops, stationery stores and shops selling baby clothes and supplies have been allowed to open nationwide, provided they could maintain the same socialdistancing and sanitary measures required in supermarkets.

But there was no consistency to the openings, with some regional governors and individual shop owners still deciding to keep their doors shut for now.

Hard-hit Lombardy and Piemonte kept book shops and stationers closed, while central Lazio postponed any opening for another week to allow stores to put in place sanitary measures to protect staff and shoppers.

Another segment of workers allowed back on the job yesterday were forestry workers, to clear dead trees ahead of the warming weather that brings forest fire season.

■■SPAIN

The recorded death toll is now more than 18,000 after 567 more people succumbed to Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, a number slightly higher than Monday’s but below most daily increases in the past two weeks.

Confirmed infections are now roughly 172,500 after the Health Ministry reported 3,045 new positive cases yesterday, a 1.8% day-to-day increase.

The figures defy the common fear that a backlog of unreported infections over the Easter holidays could have reversed the recent slowdown in the spread.

■■AUSTRIA Authorities are beginning to relax strict lockdown measures by allowing small retailers and DIY and gardening supply stores to reopen.

All customers will be required to wear mouth and nose covers and keep a distance of at least a metre from each other. There will also be a limit on the number of people allowed into stores.

■■EUROPEAN UNION Germany’s foreign minister is calling for a single smartphone app to be used across the European Union to help countries co-ordinate when and how to relax their pandemic lockdown measures.

Heiko Maas said: “It’s important we don’t end up with a patchwork of 27 corona(virus) apps and 27 data protection regimes, but co-ordinate as best as possible.”

■■NIGERIA

Africa’s most populous country, Nigeria, has extended its coronavirus lockdown of the continent’s biggest city, Lagos, and the capital, Abuja, for another two weeks.

President Muhammadu Buhari said the measures severely disrupt livelihoods but have given authorities time for advances including the raising of testing capacity to 1,500 per day. Nigeria has nearly 350 cases but many new ones are from local spread.

■■TURKEY

Turkey’s parliament has approved legislation that will free some 90,000 prisoners to ease overcrowding in prisons amid the coronavirus pandemic.

However, that doesn’t include journalists and activists, who will remain behind bars.

The legislation reduces some sentences and places 45,000 convicts who are currently serving terms in open prisons, under temporary house arrest.

■■NEW ZEALAND

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the country appears to be over the worst of its coronavirus outbreak but it is no time to let up on strict lockdown measures.

The country recorded just 17 new cases of the virus yesterday, bringing the total to 1,366. There were also four new deaths, the worst day yet on that measure, bringing the total number of deaths to nine.

■■INDIA

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has extended the world’s largest coronavirus lockdown to head off the epidemic’s peak, with officials racing to make up for lost time as the caseload crossed 10,000.

Mr Modi ordered India’s 1.3 billion people to continue to largely stay inside until May 3, but said some restrictions away from infection hotspots would be eased on April 20 to help poor people dependent upon daily wages.

■■SINGAPORE Singapore has reported its biggest daily jump in new coronavirus infections, most of them linked to foreign workers living in crowded dormitories.

The 386 newly confirmed cases raise Singapore’s tally to 2,918. Health authorities also reported a ninth death in a statement late on Monday.

■■JAPAN

Japan’s health ministry reported 390 new cases of infection for a domestic total of 7,645.

The country was put under a state of emergency last week, but many people were still seen queuing up at supermarkets and crowding shopping centres in parts of Tokyo to stock up on necessities.

■■SOUTH KOREA

South Korea has reported 27 fresh cases as infections continued to wane in the worst-hit city of Daegu and nearby towns.

South Korea’s totals are 10,564 infections and 222 virus-related deaths.