Worldwide coronavirus cases cross 5.82 million, death toll tops 359,000

More than 5.82 million people have been reported infected with the novel coronavirus globally and 359,389 have died, a Reuters tally shows.

Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday outlined the first steps for reopening the United States' most populous city, envisioning up to 400,000 people heading back to their workplaces, an easing of the lockdown that began in March.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

At least 1,728,681 cases of the highly contagious novel coronavirus have been reported in the United States and its territories while at least 101,372 people have died, according to a Reuters tally of state and local government sources as of May 29, 2020, 12:02 PM (ET). The US diagnosed its first COVID-19 case in Washington state on January 20.

Likewise, Brazil follows the US with a total of 438,238 coronavirus cases. According to Reuters’ interactive graphic tracking the global spread, the UK has the second-highest 37,837 deaths from the viral infection after the US.

EUROPE

‒ The coronavirus lockdown will ease next week for most of Britain's population, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said.

‒ France will allow restaurants, bars and cafes to reopen from June 2, though with more restrictions in Paris than elsewhere.

‒ Sending children back to schools and day care centres in Denmark, the first country in Europe to do so, did not lead to an increase in coronavirus infections, according to official data, confirming similar findings from Finland.

AMERICAS

‒ A coronavirus quarantine will continue in Colombia's capital Bogota until at least June 15.

‒ Brazil reported a daily record 26,417 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, according to the Health Ministry, bringing its total tally to 438,238, second only to the United States in confirmed cases.

‒ Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has signed into law 60-billion-real ($11.3 billion) of federal government aid to states and municipalities.

ASIA-PACIFIC

‒ China reported no new confirmed coronavirus cases in the mainland as of the end of May 28, down from two a day earlier, the country's health authority said on Friday.

‒ China has room to stimulate the economy, but the government does not want to open the "floodgates", Premier Li Keqiang said.

‒ Health workers fear the pandemic's economic shock will return Japan to 14 dark years from 1998 when more than 30,000 people took their lives annually.

‒ Indonesia will continue to prescribe two anti-malaria drugs for coronavirus patients but monitor their use closely, a spokesman for Indonesia COVID-19 taskforce said.

‒ Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte approved a recommendation to ease the lockdown in the capital Manila from June 1.

‒ Australia will divert A$280 million ($185.25 million) in overseas aid this year to bolster the response of its closest neighbours to the pandemic.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

‒ Cases of community transmission of the coronavirus are growing in Africa, particularly in Ethiopia, and a new strategy for testing is needed to prevent this, the head of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said.

‒ Kenya's small and medium businesses need urgent help to survive the economic slowdown, and many are at risk of shutting down by the end of June, the head of the central bank said.

‒ A bid round for nine oilfield licenses in Angola could be delayed by the outbreak, the national petroleum regulator said.

ECONOMIC FALLOUT

‒ This year will be the worst for many world stock markets in nearly a decade at least.

‒ International tourism is set to fall by 70% this year, marking the sector's biggest slump since records began in the 1950s, United Nations World Tourism Organization Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili told newspaper Handelsblatt.

‒ Britain's economy is unlikely to recover fully in the next two to three years, a Bank of England policymaker warned.

‒ Germany's economy is likely to shrink by 6.6% this year, the Ifo Institute said.