WASHINGTON, June 24, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Coronavirus cases are surging
across large parts of the United States and in Latin America,
according to experts and figures, highlighting how far the world
remains from stopping the pandemic as the global death toll neared
half a million on Wednesday.
Six months into a crisis that has devastated the global economy,
the International Monetary Fund was set to issue its latest growth
forecasts later Wednesday.
The World Trade Organization already warned on Tuesday that the
outlook for the world economy over the next two years remains “highly
uncertain”, and that global trade is expected to see a huge
coronavirus-driven plunge in the second quarter.
The number of deaths worldwide from the outbreak has surged past
477,000, a doubling of the toll in less than two months, according to
an AFP tally on Wednesday.
China, where the virus was first detected in the city of Wuhan in
December, said a new outbreak that has infected 256 people in Beijing
since early June is “under control”, but fears remain over the risk of
community transmission.
Experts warned that small, recurrent outbreaks of the virus were
likely in future.
“There may be an increase in cases in the winter or next spring,
but I don’t think the outbreak will be as big as the first wave of the
pandemic,” Zhong Nanshan, a leading Chinese respiratory expert, said
on Wednesday
Europe remains the worst-hit region with over 194,000 dead from
more than 2.5 million cases.
The continent has been loosening travel restrictions following a
brutal few months when it was the epicentre of the pandemic.
Russia Wednesday held grand World War II commemorations, presided
over by President Vladimir Putin, which were postponed from the
traditional date of May 9 due to the outbreak.
The Kremlin said safety precautions were being taken in the lead-up
to the parade — but participants were not wearing masks and there is
still a ban on mass gatherings in Moscow.
– ‘Real risk’ –
Just a day after the biggest lifting of the restrictions yet in
England, medical experts on Wednesday warned the British government to
prepare for the “real risk” of a second wave.
Germany, the first major EU nation to begin easing lockdown
measures, on Tuesday reimposed them on more than 600,000 people
following a cluster of infections at a slaughterhouse.
And world men’s tennis number one Novak Djokovic tested positive
after an exhibition tournament in the Balkans, drawing widespread
condemnation for organising the event.
Tennis was hoping to follow team sports like football back into
arenas and stadiums, but the positive tests of Djokovic and three
others have dampened its prospects.
The United States has recorded more deaths than any other nation,
with more than 121,000 from over 2.3 million cases.
White House advisor Anthony Fauci warned the next two weeks would
be “critical to our ability to address… surgings” in Florida, Texas
and other states.
However, President Donald Trump, whose handling of the crisis has
been widely criticised as erratic, is determined to fast-track efforts
to restore normality.
He continued to stoke controversy on Tuesday, doubling down on
weekend comments he wanted to slow testing because so many confirmed
infections made the United States look bad.
“I don’t kid,” Trump said, after a White House official described
his initial comments as just a joke.
With the parts of the United States unable to contain the pandemic,
the European Union was considering blocking US travellers as it
reopens its borders to tourism, the New York Times reported.
– ‘Little flu’ –
Latin America has been one of the world’s worst hotspots for weeks,
and the number of deaths there and in the Caribbean surpassed 100,000,
according to an AFP tally.
Brazil, where President Jair Bolsonaro has flouted containment
measures and described the virus as a “little flu”, is officially the
worst-hit country after the United States.
More than 52,000 people are confirmed to have died of the virus in
Brazil, as a federal judge ordered Bolsonaro to wear a face mask in
public.
“The president has a constitutional obligation to follow the laws
in force in the country, as well as to promote the general welfare of
the people,” the judge wrote.
Meanwhile, an Iranian official called for mask-wearing to be made
compulsory as the country on Wednesday reported its highest daily
coronavirus death toll in more than two-and-a-half months.