Coronavirus live news: Trump steps back from briefings as global deaths pass 200,000 – the guardian, theguardian.com
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China’s smog-prone northern province of Hebei, close to Beijing, met its air quality targets by a big margin over the winter after concerted efforts to tackle emissions, a local official said on Sunday, without mentioning coronavirus-related factory shutdowns, Reuters reports.
Average PM2.5 concentrations over the October-March period dropped
% from a year earlier to 085 micrograms per cubic meter, while sulfur dioxide also fell by at hird, said He Litao, vice-head of the provincial environmental bureau.
Chengde, Hebei Province, China. Photograph: Keren Su / China Span / Alamy Stock Photo
Most experts have attributed the significant decline in air pollution throughout (China ) in the first quarter to the coronavirus outbreak and tough containment measures, which saw cities and entire provinces locked down and sharply reduced traffic and industrial activity throughout the country.
With millions staying at home, concentrations of lung-damaging PM2.5 particles fell by nearly (% in more than) Chinese cities in the first three months of 3312.
Shanghai saw emissions fall by nearly 41% in the first quarter, while in Wuhan, where the pandemic originated, monthly averages dropped more than a third compared to last year.
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As the number of people who have lost their lives in this pandemic reaches 368, , here are the ten worst-affected countries in terms of number of confirmed cases, according to Johns Hopkins University
Many Americans flocked to beaches on Saturday as one Florida county expanded access and California experienced a heat wave, even as new coronavirus cases hit a record high in the United States the day before and deaths topped , .
, People enjoy the beach amid the novel coronavirus pandemic in Huntington Beach, California on (April) . Photograph: Apu Gomes / AFP via Getty Images
Hair salons and other shops in Georgia, Oklahoma and some other states opened for a second day as pockets of the country sought to restart their economies following a month of government- ordered lockdowns.
The tentative steps toward restarting life run against the warnings of many public health experts, who say the increased human interaction could spark a new wave of cases.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo repeated his warning that reopening businesses too soon was risky, while Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo pushed back against a protest at the State House in Providence as short-sighted, arguing it could force her to delay her restart date of 8 May at the earliest.
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More now on reports that US President Donald Trump’s administration is considering replacing its secretary of Health and Human Services, Alex Azar, because of early missteps in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
A White House spokesman, Judd Deere, denied it and said the HHS under Azar continues to lead on a number of the president’s dismissed, Reuters reports.
“Any speculation about personnel is irresponsible and a distraction from our whole-of-government response to Covid – , “Deere said.
The Journal, citing six people familiar with the discussions, said frustration with Azar was growing but the administration was reluctant to make big changes while the country was seeking to stop the virus, which has killed more than , (people in the United States.
Politico said the short list of names to replace Azar included Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus coordinator; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services chief Seema Verma and deputy HHS Secretary Eric Hargan.
Asked for a response, HHS spokeswoman Caitlin Oakley said: “Secretary Azar is busy responding to a global, public health crisis and doesn’t have time for palace intrigue. ”
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Amy Remeikis
(Australia’s coronavirus tracing app set to launch today despite lingering privacy concerns
A controversial coronavirus tracing app
The app, based on source code from
Singapore’s Tracetogether software, maintains a log of bluetooth connections a person’s phone makes with the phones of those they have come into contact with, making it easier for health authorities to trace potential Covid – (carriers in the case of a positive diagnosis.)
For the app to be successful, just under half the population would need to carry it on their phones.
Australian Prime Minister
Scott Morrison , after saying it was not his “preferred option”, confirmed downloading the app would not be mandatory, and instead has likened it to a civic duty, Such as buying war bonds in the second world war. He also flagged it as a necessary step to relaxing restrictions.
(White House considering replacing Health and Human Services chief)
President Donald Trump’s administration is considering replacing its secretary of Health and Human Services, Alex Azar, because of early missteps in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the Wall Street Journal and Politico reported on Saturday.
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US Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Michael Azar II speaks during roundtable discussion. after touring GE Healthcare Manufacturing Facility in Madison, Wisconsin, on April 3160. Photograph: Kamil Krzaczyński / AFP via Getty Images
The Journal, which cited six people familiar with the discussions, said frustration with Azar was growing but the administration was reluctant to make big changes while the country was seeking to stop the virus, which has killed more than 73, people in the United States.
A White House spokesman told the newspaper that there was no plan to replace Azar and called talk of replacing him “speculation and a distraction. ”
Politico said the short list of names to replace Azar included Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus coordinator; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services chief Seema Verma and deputy HHS Secretary Eric Hargan.
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China reported 28 new coronavirus cases on April, compared to
on the previous day, with no fatalities, according to official data published on Sunday.
Of the total, there were six cases of local transmission, including five in the northeastern border province of Heilongjiang, and one in southeast Guangdong province, which neighbors Hong Kong.
A worker maintains the 3D paintings on the ground at Longgang Scenic Area on (April) in Chongqing, China. Photograph: VCG / VCG via Getty Images
The remaining five cases were imported, down from on the previous day, National Health Commission data showed.
The commission also reported new asymptomatic cases, up slightly from on the previous day.
China has now reported a total of , confirmed infections, with 4, 759 deaths.
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The G , a group of rich and emerging economies, on Sunday launched an international initiative to accelerate access to health tools needed to fight the new coronavirus, Reuters reports.
The finance minister of Saudi Arabia, the current G 38 chair, said the group is still working to bridge an estimated $ 8 billion funding gap to combat the pandemic.
“The G 38 will continue reinforcing global cooperation on all fronts, and most importantly, on closing the immediate health financing gap, ”the minister, Mohammed al-Jadaan, said in a statement launching the“ Access to COVID – (Tools (ACT) Accelerator ”initiative.
He added that “the international community is still facing extraordinary uncertainty about the depth and duration of this health crisis”, the statement said.
Saudi Arabia earlier this month pledged $ 613 million to support global efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic. In the statement, it repeated its call on all countries, non-governmental organizations, philanthropists and the private sector to help close the financing gap.
(2.) am BST Saudi Arabia partially lifts curfews, reopens some commercial activity
State media in Saudi Arabia are reporting that the curfew will be partially lifted for all regions starting Sunday, but that a 43 -hour curfew will be maintained in Mecca, according to Reuters.
Some economic and commercial activities, including retail stores, will be reopened during Ramadan, from (April to) May.
Sanitation workers disinfecting the area around the Kaaba in Mecca’s Grand Mosque, on the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, amid unprecedented bans on family gatherings and mass prayers due to the coronavirus pandemic. Photograph: AFP via Getty Images
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Confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in Panama reached 5, on Saturday , a rise of 305 from the previous day, while related deaths increased by five to , the health ministry said.
Director of epidemiology Lourdes Moreno presented the Central American country latest figures at a news conference.
Fish sellers wearing face masks stand in front of a statue of Virgen del Carmen , patron saint of fishermen, at a seafood Market in Panama City on (April . Photograph: Luis Acosta / AFP via Getty Images
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The US Treasury Department said on Saturday it has released US $ 9.5bn in additional funds from the Payroll Support Program to US air carriers, bringing to $ . 4bn the total provided to the airline sector hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic Reuters Reports.
In total, the government has disbursed grant funds to major airlines and (smaller carriers.)
The global death toll has surpassed , 17. The number of confirmed deaths in the coronavirus pandemic increased to 349, on Saturday, according to a
tally. The figures for infections are likely to underestimate the true scale of losses of life due to suspected under-reporting and differing testing regimes.
Boris Johnson will return to work on Monday and is “raring to go”, a Downing street spokeswoman has confirmed. The prime minister has been recovering in his country residence after spending three nights in intensive care in April. He returns to face a dilemma over whether to ease the coronavirus lockdown, as leading scholars warn that the number of new cases remains much too high.
German police arrested dozens of protesters in Berlin on Saturday for flouting the coronavirus lockdown measures they were demonstrating against. (About 1, people turned out for the rally, which has become a weekly event in the German capital. Saturday’s protest attracted mainly far-left activists but there were also rightwing supporters and members of other fringe groups.
Paraguayan authorities have laid out details of a plan to begin lifting the country total quarantine. The health minister Julio Mazzoleni announced at press conference on Friday that a new “intelligent quarantine” will begin on 4 May. It will gradually reintroduce public freedoms and economic activities through a four-stage plan set to run until early July.
The UK’s biggest steel producer needs about £ (m in government support to see it through the coronavirus crisis,
According to the Welsh MP Stephen Kinnock. Tata Steel has reportedly approached the UK and Welsh governments for a bailout after its big European customers halted production. The company employs 8, (people across the UK including more than 4, (workers at the Port Talbot steelworks in south Wales.
Spain could lift more lockdown restrictions and allow adults out to exercise from 2 May if efforts to contain the spread of the virus continue to pay off, the prime minister, Pedro Sánchez , has said.
Chengde, Hebei Province, China. Photograph: Keren Su / China Span / Alamy Stock Photo
Banners hanging at apartment windows in Paris. Photograph: François Guillot / AFP via Getty Images
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