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Coronavirus live news: Turkey infections hit two-month high; India tops global tally of new cases for 18th day Coronavirus live news: Turkey infections hit two-month high; India tops global tally of new cases for 18th day
(about 1 hour later)
Turkey records highest number of new cases since mid-June; India worse than US and Brazil in number of daily new cases; European re-infections add to immunity concerns prompted by Hong Kong caseTurkey records highest number of new cases since mid-June; India worse than US and Brazil in number of daily new cases; European re-infections add to immunity concerns prompted by Hong Kong case
Here’s a quick recap of the latest coronavirus developments across the globe from the last few hours:
UK PM Boris Johnson drops advice against face mask use in English schools. Pupils in England will no longer be advised against using face masks in schools after prime minister Boris Johnson made an 11th-hour U-turn days before students head back to the classroom.
Lebanon service sector says it will rebel against lockdown. A representative of Lebanon’s hospitality sector said that service and tourism businesses would defy a newly reinstated coronavirus lockdown that has compounded the crisis-hit country’s economic woes.
The number of Americans newly diagnosed with the coronavirus is falling. About 43,000 new cases are being reported daily across the country, down 21% from early August, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Experts credit the development at least partly to increased wearing of masks, even as the outbreak continues to claim nearly 1,000 lives in the US each day.
Turkey recorded its highest number of new coronavirus cases since mid-June. Another 1,502 infections were confirmed on Tuesday, taking the official tally over 261,000. New cases were last this high on 15 June, two weeks after Turkey lifted a partial lockdown. The government has responded by banning some celebrations in 14 provinces.
India reported the highest number of new coronavirus cases globally for the 18th straight day. According to a Reuters tally, infections rocketed by another 1.5 million since the start of August, taking India’s total to around 3.1 million, more than in the US and Brazil. The rate of new cases in the country is increasing rapidly, climbing by 60,975 in the latest 24-hour period, according to the federal health ministry.
Two European patients were confirmed to have been reinfected with coronavirus, raising concerns about immunity. Regional public broadcasters said a patient in the Netherlands and another in Belgium had also been reinfected. It follows a report this week by researchers in Hong Kong about a man there who had been reinfected four and a half months after recovering.
That’s all from me Jessica Murray today, I’m now handing over to my colleague Ben Doherty in Australia.
Carnival’s Princess Cruises has said it will cancel early 2021 cruises on two ships, citing travel, border and port restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Cruise lines, hammered by a crisis that has seen some ships turn into infection hotspots, had earlier said they were expecting solid 2021 bookings, mainly as repeat cruisers were eager to book their trips.
Carnival’s two ships affected, Island Princess and Pacific Princess, were set to sail from North America and Australia respectively.
Guests that had booked trips on these ships would receive a refundable credit for future trips for the fare they paid, and an additional non-refundable future cruise credit equal to 25% of the fare paid, the company said.
Earlier in the day, Carnival’s Cunard also paused operations from November to up to 16 May 2021.
At least three Princess Cruises ships turned into hotbeds for coronavirus infections. One of them, the Ruby Princess, became part of a homicide investigation in Australia, being the source of the country’s deadliest virus infection.
Kate Green, Labour’s shadow education secretary, has called the Department of Education change on face coverings a “half baked U-turn”.Kate Green, Labour’s shadow education secretary, has called the Department of Education change on face coverings a “half baked U-turn”.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, welcomed the “flexibility” of the change in advice on face coverings in secondary schools.Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, welcomed the “flexibility” of the change in advice on face coverings in secondary schools.
Former Maldives president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom said he has tested positive for coronavirus as the island nation battles an increase in new cases.Former Maldives president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom said he has tested positive for coronavirus as the island nation battles an increase in new cases.
Gayoom, who held power for three decades, was checked after he developed a fever, a former aide close to the family told AFP. No word was available on his condition.Gayoom, who held power for three decades, was checked after he developed a fever, a former aide close to the family told AFP. No word was available on his condition.
“I have tested positive for Covid-19,” the 82-year-old politician wrote on Twitter. “May Almighty Allah bless me and all other sick people with a speedy recovery and good health!”“I have tested positive for Covid-19,” the 82-year-old politician wrote on Twitter. “May Almighty Allah bless me and all other sick people with a speedy recovery and good health!”
After leaving office in 2008 Gayoom has remained an active political figure. Opponents have accused him of being an autocratic leader during his three decades in power.After leaving office in 2008 Gayoom has remained an active political figure. Opponents have accused him of being an autocratic leader during his three decades in power.
However, he is also credited with being an early campaigner against global warming and sea level rise which he had warned could wipe the low-lying Maldives off the face of the earth.However, he is also credited with being an early campaigner against global warming and sea level rise which he had warned could wipe the low-lying Maldives off the face of the earth.
The Maldives, known for upmarket island tourism, reopened its international borders to visitors in mid-July after a three-month halt that crippled the hospitality industry.The Maldives, known for upmarket island tourism, reopened its international borders to visitors in mid-July after a three-month halt that crippled the hospitality industry.
It has seen a steady increase in cases in recent weeks and has reported a total of 7,047 infections and 28 deaths.It has seen a steady increase in cases in recent weeks and has reported a total of 7,047 infections and 28 deaths.
General Motors and Ford said they are close to completing production of ventilators ordered by the Trump administration this spring, and are ramping down or exiting the operations.General Motors and Ford said they are close to completing production of ventilators ordered by the Trump administration this spring, and are ramping down or exiting the operations.
Many of the ventilators assembled by the automakers and other manufacturers have gone into a US government stockpile as doctors have shifted away from using invasive ventilators with Covid-19 patients.Many of the ventilators assembled by the automakers and other manufacturers have gone into a US government stockpile as doctors have shifted away from using invasive ventilators with Covid-19 patients.
The government currently has 108,000 ventilators in its medical equipment stockpile, and 12,000 deployed at US hospitals, the US Health and Human Services department said on Tuesday.The government currently has 108,000 ventilators in its medical equipment stockpile, and 12,000 deployed at US hospitals, the US Health and Human Services department said on Tuesday.
GM and medical equipment maker Ventec Life Systems are on the “home stretch” towards completing a contract to deliver 30,000 critical care ventilators by the end of August under a $489m contract with the federal government, the automaker said.GM and medical equipment maker Ventec Life Systems are on the “home stretch” towards completing a contract to deliver 30,000 critical care ventilators by the end of August under a $489m contract with the federal government, the automaker said.
GM and Ventec have already delivered more than 20,000 machines, GM spokesman Jim Cain said.GM and Ventec have already delivered more than 20,000 machines, GM spokesman Jim Cain said.
Ford has assembled about 47,000 of the 50,000 ventilators it agreed to supply to partner General Electric, Ford spokeswoman Rachel McCleery said. GE has a $336m contract with the government.Ford has assembled about 47,000 of the 50,000 ventilators it agreed to supply to partner General Electric, Ford spokeswoman Rachel McCleery said. GE has a $336m contract with the government.
Ford and GM earlier this year said they would employ as many as 1,500 people on ventilator assembly lines. Automakers likened the efforts to their switch from making cars to tanks and planes during the second world war.Ford and GM earlier this year said they would employ as many as 1,500 people on ventilator assembly lines. Automakers likened the efforts to their switch from making cars to tanks and planes during the second world war.
With North American car and truck factories back in operation, the Detroit automakers are winding down their forays into ventilator manufacturing, while continuing to make respiratory masks.With North American car and truck factories back in operation, the Detroit automakers are winding down their forays into ventilator manufacturing, while continuing to make respiratory masks.
The automakers’ efforts to build ventilators and other medical equipment were launched in a politically charged atmosphere as the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic swamped the US economy and healthcare system.The automakers’ efforts to build ventilators and other medical equipment were launched in a politically charged atmosphere as the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic swamped the US economy and healthcare system.
The shortage of ventilators became a symbol of the nation’s struggle to respond. President Donald Trump put pressure on the automakers as part of a broader push to secure more than 130,000 ventilators by the end of 2020.The shortage of ventilators became a symbol of the nation’s struggle to respond. President Donald Trump put pressure on the automakers as part of a broader push to secure more than 130,000 ventilators by the end of 2020.
The automakers used the medical equipment assembly operations set up in the spring to test safety protocols they later used to reopen their vehicle-making operations.The automakers used the medical equipment assembly operations set up in the spring to test safety protocols they later used to reopen their vehicle-making operations.
Irish prime minister Micheál Martin and deputy prime minister Leo Varadkar have said there were clear breaches of public health guidelines during European trade commissioner Phil Hogan’s trip to Ireland.Irish prime minister Micheál Martin and deputy prime minister Leo Varadkar have said there were clear breaches of public health guidelines during European trade commissioner Phil Hogan’s trip to Ireland.
They said in a statement:They said in a statement:
Hogan attended a golf dinner during the trip that has outraged the Irish public and led an Irish minister to resign and several lawmakers to be disciplined.Hogan attended a golf dinner during the trip that has outraged the Irish public and led an Irish minister to resign and several lawmakers to be disciplined.
The number of Americans newly diagnosed with the coronavirus is falling, a development experts credit at least partly to increased wearing of masks, even as the outbreak continues to claim nearly 1,000 lives in the US each day.The number of Americans newly diagnosed with the coronavirus is falling, a development experts credit at least partly to increased wearing of masks, even as the outbreak continues to claim nearly 1,000 lives in the US each day.
About 43,000 new cases are being reported daily across the country, down 21% from early August, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.About 43,000 new cases are being reported daily across the country, down 21% from early August, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
While the US, India and Brazil still have the highest numbers of new cases in the world, the downward trend is encouraging.While the US, India and Brazil still have the highest numbers of new cases in the world, the downward trend is encouraging.
“It’s profoundly hopeful news,” said Dr Monica Gandhi, an infectious diseases expert at the University of California who credits the American public’s growing understanding of how the virus spreads, more mask-wearing and, possibly, an increasing level of immunity.“It’s profoundly hopeful news,” said Dr Monica Gandhi, an infectious diseases expert at the University of California who credits the American public’s growing understanding of how the virus spreads, more mask-wearing and, possibly, an increasing level of immunity.
“Hopefully all those factors are coming into play to get this virus under control in this country that’s really been battered by the pandemic,” she said.“Hopefully all those factors are coming into play to get this virus under control in this country that’s really been battered by the pandemic,” she said.
The virus is blamed for more than 5.7 million confirmed infections and about 178,000 deaths in the US.The virus is blamed for more than 5.7 million confirmed infections and about 178,000 deaths in the US.
The decline in newly reported cases in the US comes even as deaths from the virus remain alarmingly high. Over the past two weeks, officials have reported an average of 965 deaths a day from Covid-19, down from 1,051 a day in early August.The decline in newly reported cases in the US comes even as deaths from the virus remain alarmingly high. Over the past two weeks, officials have reported an average of 965 deaths a day from Covid-19, down from 1,051 a day in early August.
The percentage of tests coming back positive for the disease has also declined over the past two weeks, from 7.3% to 6.1%. But that comes as the total number of tests administered has fallen from its August peak of more than 820,000 a day, levelling off in recent weeks at about 690,000 a day.The percentage of tests coming back positive for the disease has also declined over the past two weeks, from 7.3% to 6.1%. But that comes as the total number of tests administered has fallen from its August peak of more than 820,000 a day, levelling off in recent weeks at about 690,000 a day.
The situation has improved dramatically in several states that struggled with high caseloads earlier this summer.The situation has improved dramatically in several states that struggled with high caseloads earlier this summer.
In Arizona, for example, officials reported 859 new cases on Tuesday, down from a peak of 5,500 in late June. More than 2,000 people arrived at the state’s hospitals showing symptoms of the virus on a single day in early July. This week, that number has been less than 1,000.In Arizona, for example, officials reported 859 new cases on Tuesday, down from a peak of 5,500 in late June. More than 2,000 people arrived at the state’s hospitals showing symptoms of the virus on a single day in early July. This week, that number has been less than 1,000.
In Florida, where more than 10,000 people have died, the state reported 2,600 new cases on Tuesday. Earlier in the summer, it was regularly reporting more than 10,000.In Florida, where more than 10,000 people have died, the state reported 2,600 new cases on Tuesday. Earlier in the summer, it was regularly reporting more than 10,000.
Nursing homes in the US will now be required to test staff for Covid-19 and offer testing to residents, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said.Nursing homes in the US will now be required to test staff for Covid-19 and offer testing to residents, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said.
In July, the Trump administration released an additional $5bn from the Provider Relief Fund to help nursing homes address critical needs, including hiring additional staff and increasing testing.In July, the Trump administration released an additional $5bn from the Provider Relief Fund to help nursing homes address critical needs, including hiring additional staff and increasing testing.
London mayor Sadiq Khan has welcomed the government’s U-turn on face masks in schools.London mayor Sadiq Khan has welcomed the government’s U-turn on face masks in schools.
Posting on Twitter, he said:Posting on Twitter, he said:
Turkey’s former economy czar and the leader of the opposition Deva (Remedy) Party, Ali Babacan, said he had tested positive for Covid-19 but was in good health, becoming the most high-profile Turkish politican to contract the virus.Turkey’s former economy czar and the leader of the opposition Deva (Remedy) Party, Ali Babacan, said he had tested positive for Covid-19 but was in good health, becoming the most high-profile Turkish politican to contract the virus.
Babacan, 53, also a former deputy prime minister, resigned from president Tayyip Erdoğan’s AK Party last July over “deep differences” about the direction of the party he helped found. In March he formed his rival political party.Babacan, 53, also a former deputy prime minister, resigned from president Tayyip Erdoğan’s AK Party last July over “deep differences” about the direction of the party he helped found. In March he formed his rival political party.
Babacan said on Twitter:Babacan said on Twitter:
Turkey’s daily number of new coronavirus cases has risen in recent weeks as the government has rolled back containment measures in the interest of shoring up the economy.Turkey’s daily number of new coronavirus cases has risen in recent weeks as the government has rolled back containment measures in the interest of shoring up the economy.
On Tuesday, the number of new cases jumped the highest since mid-June with 1,502 recorded infections.On Tuesday, the number of new cases jumped the highest since mid-June with 1,502 recorded infections.
More than 261,000 people have contracted the virus in Turkey according to official figures, while 6,193 people have died.More than 261,000 people have contracted the virus in Turkey according to official figures, while 6,193 people have died.
The government has warned citizens about rising cases, and responded on Tuesday by banning some events in 14 provinces, including the capital Ankara.The government has warned citizens about rising cases, and responded on Tuesday by banning some events in 14 provinces, including the capital Ankara.
Pupils in England will no longer be advised against using face masks in schools after prime minister Boris Johnson made an 11th-hour U-turn days before students head back to the classroom.
In lockdown areas such as Greater Manchester, which have greater restrictions to stop the spread of the virus, wearing face coverings will become mandatory in school corridors where social distancing is more difficult.
In areas of England not subject to tighter restrictions, headteachers will have discretion over whether to require face masks, but the government will no longer advise against their use, a senior government source said.
The prime minister bowed to pressure and changed the guidance late on Tuesday after scores of headteachers broke ranks to urge their use, backed by Labour and trade unions.
Johnson told reporters earlier in the day he would “look at the changing medical evidence as we go on” but insisted schools would be safe regardless.
The US agency in charge of processing immigration applications said it had avoided a planned furlough of 70% of its staff but warned that it still faced financial hardship that could result in some applicants experiencing longer wait times.
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency in charge of processing work permits, so-called green cards and other visas, said that it had avoided furloughs planned for 30 August.
But aggressive spending cuts the agency planned to put in place would impact all operations, including naturalisations, it said in a statement.
USCIS is dependent on fees from new immigration applications. The agency reported a 50% drop in fees in June due to less immigration during the coronavirus pandemic.
But immigration experts and former officials say even before the onset of the pandemic, the agency had seen revenues fall sharply as a result of slowdowns in processing and other limits placed on immigration applications.
Republican president Donald Trump has made curbing immigration a priority during his years in office.
The USCIS deputy director for policy, Joseph Edlow, warned in the statement there was no guarantee the agency can avoid future furloughs and called on the US Congress to ensure the agency had sufficient funding for fiscal year 2021, which starts in October.
USCIS had asked for a $1.2bn bailout from Congress in May to avoid the projected furloughs, but lawmakers pushed back, arguing the agency had the funding it needed to continue operations through the fiscal year.
Switzerland is set to be the next country on which to have quarantine measures imposed by the government in England, the Telegraph has reported, with the Czech Republic and Iceland moving into the “danger zone” due to high coronavirus infection rates.
If confirmed, it will means travellers from Switzerland will have to self-isolate for two weeks on arrival in the country, along with travellers from Spain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and a number of other countries the UK government deems to have worrying coronavirus infection levels.
Ministers are due to meet within the next 48 hours to make a decision, the Telegraph reports, with an announcement expected on Thursday ahead of the usual 4am on Saturday deadline for the new rules to come into effect.
Young people are driving the spread of Covid-19 in the Americas, the head of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has said, noting that both deaths and caseloads have doubled in the region over the past six weeks.
Dr Carissa Etienne chastised governments that have rushed economic reopenings despite data that shows a worsening pandemic.
“This is not a good sign. Wishing the virus away will not work,” she said, detailing what she described as a “real disconnect” between the relaxation of containment measures and the continuing spread of the virus.
The PAHO is the Washington-based Americas arm of the UN World Health Organization.
Since July, coronavirus cases in the Americas have more than doubled to about 12 million confirmed infections, while deaths have shot up by roughly the same rate to some 450,000, according to PAHO data.
Etienne said that “the vast majority” of reported Covid-19 cases in the Americas have been among those between the ages of 19 and 59, but that almost 70% of deaths have been among individuals who are 60 years old or older.
“This indicates that younger people are primarily driving the spread of the disease in our region,” she said.
A recent uptick in cases in several Caribbean nations including the Bahamas is also a growing concern, said Etienne, with new infections not only driven by tourism but also returning residents.
Overall, governments should base their reopening decisions on the best available data and expand testing and contract tracing programmes to better identify and control spikes in cases, she said.
Six of the world’s 10 most affected countries are in the Americas, said Etienne, pointing to the US, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Argentina.
More US colleges are grappling with high numbers of students testing positive for Covid-19 just days into the start of the new semester, after some universities rolled back their campus reopening plans in recent weeks.
The University of Alabama on Monday reported more than 550 people across its campuses had tested positive for Covid-19 since it resumed in-person classes on 19 August. Most of those infected were students, faculty and staff at the university’s main campus in Tuscaloosa.
Citing a “dramatic increase” in coronavirus cases on campus, the mayor of Tuscaloosa issued an executive order on Monday ordering bars to shut down for 14 days and placing restrictions on other establishments.
“Many students who tested positive for Covid-19 have chosen to go home to isolate,” Kellee Reinhart, the university’s vice chancellor for communications, told Reuters.
Reinhart said the school had an “ample amount” of space for Covid-19 positive students to isolate and that it was enhancing testing of various groups.
The university has conducted more than 46,000 tests, according to a dashboard it released this week, and the positivity rate stood at about 1%.
The number of positive cases does not include the 400 students who tested positive upon returning to University of Alabama campuses before classes began last week.
Alabama is not alone in scrambling to deal with Covid-19 college outbreaks.
The University of Southern California (USC), which resumed education almost entirely online on 17 August, on Monday said that more than 100 students at the University Park Campus in Los Angeles were in a 14-day quarantine after exposure to the virus.
Ohio State University, where classes resume on Tuesday, this week issued more than 200 interim suspensions for students following a string of large parties where health and safety rules were largely ignored, according to media reports.
Last week, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill cancelled in-class instruction after positive cases of Covid-19 shot up dramatically.
A representative of Lebanon’s hospitality sector said that service and tourism businesses would defy a newly reinstated coronavirus lockdown that has compounded the crisis-hit country’s economic woes.
“From tomorrow, we will open our doors,” said Tony Ramy, head of the syndicate of owners of restaurants, cafes, nightclubs and pastry shops.
“The arbitrary and demagogic decision to close down, whether partially or fully, does not concern us any more,” he said in a televised statement from a Beirut street heavily damaged by the huge 4 August explosion at the capital’s port.
An AFP photographer said dozens of people gathered in support of the announcement, some holding signs that read “Tourism is the pulse of Lebanon” and “For us, the state vanished with the blast”.
The declaration, made on behalf of a wider tourism body also representing hotels and seaside resorts, came four days after authorities imposed a two-week coronavirus lockdown to stem a string of record-hitting daily infection tolls.
Lebanon has registered 13,687 coronavirus cases, including 138 deaths.
Under the latest rules, malls, nightclubs, gyms, swimming pools, restaurants and coffee shops have been ordered to close.
Restaurants, coffee shops and pastry shops can deliver, but only between 6am and 6pm due to an overnight curfew.
Ramy blamed the government for the devastating explosion at Beirut’s port and the huge losses it has caused the tourism industry, which he estimated at around $1bn – including $315m for restaurants alone.
He called on the sector to engage in “civil disobedience” against the state by severing commercial ties with the government and depriving it of tax money.
“We will not pay a single penny until we have a new state,” he said.
The interior ministry responded that it would punish those who flouted the lockdown, and urged Lebanese to act in the public interest.
“The interior ministry ... warns it will not be lenient in implementing what the laws stipulate for transgressors, from issuing fines to referral to the relevant judicial authority,” caretaker interior minister Mohammed Fahmi said, shortly before the country announced a record 24-hour coronavirus death toll of 12.
The Beirut traders’ association this week also said businesses wanted to reopen from Wednesday.
Authorities fear Lebanon’s fragile health sector would struggle to cope with a further spike in coronavirus cases, especially after some hospitals near the port were damaged or taken out of commission in the explosion.
Translate Bio said that an experimental coronavirus vaccine it developed with French drugmaker Sanofi induced immune response in early-stage non-human primate studies.
In a regulatory filing, the company cited Sanofi’s presentation slides showing that the vaccine candidate induced neutralising antibodies and T-cell responses in animal studies.
Translate, which signed a potential $2bn vaccine development deal with Sanofi last month, said their vaccine candidate is set to be evaluated in an early- to mid-stage human trial.
Other drugmakers racing to develop a safe and effective vaccine for Covid-19 are further ahead in their testing, with Moderna, Johnson and Johnson and Pfizer starting their late-stage studies.
Translate’s vaccine, like Moderna’s, uses mRNA technology which delivers proteins that produce immune response against the disease directly to target cells.
Sanofi is developing another Covid-19 vaccine candidate with British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline.
In July, the US government said it is providing $2.1bn to Sanofi and GSK for Covid-19 vaccines to cover 50 million people and to underwrite the drugmakers’ testing and manufacturing.
Hi everyone, this is Jessica Murray, I’ll be steering the blog for the next few hours.
Feel free to get in touch with any story tips or personal experiences you would like to share.
Email: jessica.murray@theguardian.comTwitter: @journojess_
Turkey recorded its highest number of new coronavirus cases since mid-June. Another 1,502 infections were confirmed on Tuesday, according to government data, taking the official tally over 261,000. New cases were last this high on 15 June, two weeks after Turkey lifted a partial lockdown. The government has responded by banning some celebrations in 14 provinces.
India reported the highest number of new coronavirus cases globally for the 18th straight day. According to a Reuters tally, infections rocketed by another 1.5 million since the start of August, taking India’s total to around 3.1 million, more than in the US and Brazil. The rate of new cases in the country is increasing rapidly, climbing by 60,975 in the latest 24-hour period, according to the federal health ministry.
Gaza entered a 48-hour lockdown after the first cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in the general population. Four cases of coronavirus were confirmed in a single family in a refugee camp, the first in Gaza that did not involve people quarantined in border facilities after crossing over from Egypt and Israel. Health authorities in the Hamas Islamist-run territory of 2 million people are concerned over the potentially disastrous combination of poverty, densely populated refugee camps and limited hospital facilities in dealing with an outbreak.
Two European patients were confirmed to have been reinfected with coronavirus, raising concerns about immunity. Regional public broadcasters said a patient in the Netherlands and another in Belgium had also been reinfected. It follows a report this week by researchers in Hong Kong about a man there who had been reinfected four and a half months after recovering.
The German economy contracted by a record 9.7% in the second quarter, the sharpest decline since Germany began to record quarterly GDP calculations in 1970. The statistics office said it came as consumer spending (10.9% down), company investments (19.6% down) and exports (20.3% down) all collapsed at the height of the pandemic.
Thank you so much to everybody who kept me company throughout the day by sending in news tips and comments, and to all of you for reading along. That’s it from me, Lucy Campbell, ‘til tomorrow.
The French health ministry said it had recorded 3,304 new coronavirus infections on Tuesday, well below daily highs seen last week and taking the cumulative total to 248,158.
The number of new infections was above the 1,995 reported on Monday – which traditionally shows a dip – but remained well below Sunday’s new post-lockdown record of 4,897 and below the levels above 3,600 reported in the second half of last week.
The ministry also said the death toll rose by 16 to 30,544, while the number of people in hospital with Covid-19 fell to a new post-lockdown low of 4,600. The number of people in intensive care rose by 11 to 410 and is now back up to levels last seen at the end of July.