Coronavirus global summary: deaths and cases - 14 May
Coronavirus live global updates: cases, deaths and news - 14 May
Global totals and country news
Confirmed worldwide cases: 4.4 million +
Confirmed worldwide deaths: 300k +
Asian stocks set to rise on optimism of post-lockdown recovery, stimulus
Asian stocks were set to rise on Friday amid investor optimism about the re-opening of the U.S. economy from coronavirus lockdowns and possibly more stimulus that could fuel a recovery.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he was open to negotiating another possible stimulus bill amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, but "was taking his time" to see if more federal action was needed.
Ahead of the Asian open, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures climbed 0.16%, Australian S&P/ASX 200 futures rose 0.85%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 futures were down 0.15%.
Thousands of graves dug in Santiago cemetery amid Chile spike
Chile has suffered a surge in coronavirus cases in recent days, leading the country’s government to issue a lockdown order in its capital, Santiago. According to Johns Hopkins University, Chile has now registered just over 37,000 cases, leading to 368 deaths.
Greek beaches prepare to re-open for the public
Umbrellas placed on a beach on the Greek coast. Organised beaches will re-open for the public all over the country on 16 May, with strict social-distancing rules in place as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus. (Photo: EFE/EPA/ORESTIS PANAGIOTOU)
UK applauds care workers
People in the UK have this evening taken part in their eighth weekly round of applause for healthcare staff and other key workers in the country, where there have been just over 234,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and approximately 33,600 deaths.
Trump heads back to Washington after Pennsylvania visit
US president Donald Trump prepares to board Air Force One to fly back to Washington after visiting medical equipment distributor Owens & Minor's warehouse in Allentown, Pennsylvania. (Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria)
Coronavirus: LaLiga chief's brother leading Covid-19 vaccine bid
LaLiga chief's brother leading vaccine bid at US university
Pablo Tebas, the brother of LaLiga president Javier, is leading a team of University of Pennsylvania virologists who are developing a coronavirus vaccine.
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Global death toll passes 300,000
The worldwide death toll from the coronavirus pandemic has moved past the 300,000 mark, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University. In all, 300,315 people have died of Covid-19, JHU says.
There have been a total of 4,408,618 cases of coronavirus since the crisis began, with the United States the world’s worst-affected country. 1,401,948 people have contracted Covid-19 in the US, leading to 85,066 fatalities.
French workers in Amazon confrontation
Amazon workers in France have taken a stand. They have been battling with their bosses since the start of the coronavirus pandemic over working conditions.
UK gov "opening door" to football resumption
The UK government is “opening the door” to the resumption of professional football in England, says culture secretary Oliver Dowden, after “positive” talks with the Football Association, the Premier League and the English Football League on Thursday.
12 June has been mooted as a possible date for the Premier League to return to action, with games held behind closed doors.
262 new Covid-19 deaths in Italy
Italy registered 262 new coronavirus fatalities on Thursday, bringing the country’s total death toll to 31,368. There were 992 new infections, the country’s civil protection authority said. Overall, there have been just over 223,000 coronavirus cases in Italy.
Kenyans left out of work fight spread of Covid-19
A Kenyan man, among those who are employed at a local workshop to make face shields and body suits after they recently lost their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic, wears a face shield as he assembles others in the Waithaka suburb of Nairobi, Kenya. A Kenyan entrepreneur, Anthony Karanja, set up a local workshop that produces face shields and body suits that he later sells, and donates some to health workers in local health facilities as a way of creating employment to youths who recently lost their jobs and to join the fight in curbing the spread of the coronavirus. (Photo: EFE/EPA/Daniel Irungu)
Coronavirus: the complete guide to the Covid-19 pandemic
Coronavirus: the complete guide to the Covid-19 pandemic
All the information you need to understand the coronavirus and ways to stay safe during the Covid-19 pandemic:
WHO issues grim warning
According to the World Health Organization, it could be up to five years before the coronavirus pandemic is under control.
Nissan could look at shutting Barcelona plant
(Reuters) Nissan Motor may be looking at the possibility of closing its Barcelona factory but no final decision has been made as the Japanese carmaker plans a new global strategic direction, two sources with direct knowledge told Reuters.
The Nikkei newspaper reported on Thursday that Nissan is planning to reduce its global capacity by 20% and close its Barcelona-area plant, shifting its production to Renault plants.
A Nissan Spain spokesman declined to comment on the Nikkei report, but said the carmaker plans to present an updated global business plan in late May.
"The company does not comment rumours or information about the future of the plant," a Nissan Spain spokesman said, adding that Nissan's European chairman had earlier told union leaders at the Barcelona plant they would be informed about the factory's future before summer.
US unemployment continues to rise
Reports state that the number of unemployed people in the US rose by three million last week. The total number of out of work americans since mid-March now stands at 36.5 million.
UK COVID-19 death toll rises by 428 to 33,614
The COVID-19 death toll in the United Kingdom rose by 428 to 33,614, health officials said on Thursday.
An update from the officials also showed that more than 126,000 tests were carried out on May 13.
Irish PM says it will take months for EU travel to return to normal
It will take months not weeks for COVID-19 restrictions to be lifted and travel around the European Union to return to normal, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar told parliament on Thursday.
Ireland, which is part of a Common Travel Area with the United Kingdom but not a member of the European Union's Schengen free travel area, is considering strengthening public health requirements for visitors from abroad, Varadkar said.
"While it is our policy to resume normal travel for business, leisure, study and visits to friends and relatives (around the EU) as soon as it is safe to do so ... it will be months, not weeks before this is possible," he said.
Besiktas confirm 8 positives after coronavirus testing
Turkish giants Besiktas confirm 8 positives after coronavirus testing
It's believed that club president and Ahmet Nur Cebi and veteran striker Yilmaz are among the individuals who tested positive.
France unveils 'massive' 18 bln euro plan for hard-hit tourism sector
France on Thursday announced measures worth 18 billion euros ($19 billion) to support its tourism sector, which has been hammered by the coronavirus crisis and resulting shutdown in beaches, leisure attractions and hotels.
Nearly 90 million foreign tourists visited France in 2019, making it the most visited country in the world, according to government data. Tourism accounts for almost 8% of the country's 2.3 trillion euro economy.
"Tourism is facing what is probably its worst challenge in modern history," Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told a news conference. "Because this is one of the crown jewels of the French economy, rescuing it is a national priority."
As Spain's daily coronavirus death toll rises, potential second wave feared
Spain's daily coronavirus death toll rose on Thursday to its highest in a week as authorities warned that a second wave of the outbreak was possible after a nationwide antibody survey showed about 5% of the population had contracted the virus.
The number of fatalities caused by the disease reported each day rose on Thursday to 217 up from 184 on the previous day, the health ministry said. The number rose above 200 for the first time since May 8.
The reasons for the increase are unclear, head of health emergencies Fernando Simon said. More than half of the new fatalities were reported in one region, Catalonia.
"We are now working with the region to identify the date of the deaths and evaluate whether these are new fatalities or if there was a delay in the update," Simon said.
WH Smith sees online book sales surge as closures hammer results
WH Smith on Thursday reported an 85% slump in group sales in April, slightly better than its earlier forecast as a 400% jump in online book sales helped offset some of the damage of mass coronavirus-led closures of its kiosks and stores.
The company, whose newspaper and stationery outlets are a common feature of UK high streets, hospitals and train stations, said it was planning on a phased store re-opening schedule across its international territories, UK travel channels and high street business.
WH Smith has tapped the government's coronavirus aid scheme, suspended dividend, furloughed employees, raised equity, secured 120 million pounds ($146.41 million) in new lending facilities and waivers for banking covenant tests to survive through the crisis that has shut most of its stores.
Russia's coronavirus cases pass 250,000 mark
Russia on Thursday reported 9,974 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, its lowest daily rise since May 2, bringing its nationwide tally to 252,245.
Russia's coronavirus response centre said 93 people died overnight, bringing the official death toll to 2,305.
Spain daily death rate
The Spanish government has confirmed that 217 people died in the past 24 hours as a result of Covid-19. Today's figure is the first day in five that the death toll is higher than the 200 mark.
Mental health advice from the World Health Organisation
The pandemic is having a major impact on mental well-being across the planet with the WHO offering some guidelines to deal with the impact of the situation.
Restaurants to reopen with cardboard guests
Cardboard cutouts of human beings sitting at tables inside the Five Dock Dining restaurant in Sydney, Australia. Restaurants and cafes in New South Wales are preparing to reopen with social distancing measures in place as the state government relaxes COVID-19 restrictions. From Friday 15 May cafes, restaurants and hotel dining areas are allowed to reopen but can only seat 10 patrons at a time and for at least four square metres of space per person. To make patrons feel more comfortable and like they are having a regular dining experience
Five Dock Dining owner Frank Angeletta will use cardboard customers to fill the empty space in his restaurant along with having taped background noise simulating guest 'chatter' playing for ambience.
(Photo by James D. Morgan/Getty Images)
Serie A earmarks 13 June as restart date
Serie A earmarks 13 June as restart date
After a videoconference with member clubs, a mid-June start was cited with the final green light now required by the Italian government.
Only 4.4% of French population infected by coronavirus-Pasteur institute
A study led by the Pasteur Institute says a mere 4.4% of the French population - or 2.8 million people - have been infected by the novel coronavirus, much higher than the official count of cases but way too low to achieve so-called "herd immunity".
In a study published on Wednesday in the journal Science, researchers say the infection rate in the worst-hit parts of France - the eastern part of the country and the Paris region - is between 9 and 10 percent on average.
"Around 65% of the population should be immune if we want to control the pandemic by the sole means of immunity", the study says.
Herd immunity refers to a situation where enough people in a population have immunity to an infection to be able to effectively stop that disease from spreading.
Asian stocks drop as virus recovery begins to look distant
Asia's stock markets fell and gold hit a one-week high on Thursday as worries about a second wave of coronavirus infections and a dour assessment of the way back from the head of the U.S. Federal Reserve dashed hopes for a quick recovery.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned of an "extended period" of weak economic growth, while vowing to use the U.S. central bank's power as needed and calling for additional fiscal spending to stem the fallout from the pandemic.
"The path ahead is both highly uncertain and subject to significant downside risks," Powell said in a webcast speech.
Adding to investors' angst, a top World Health Organization official said the virus may never go away.
Austria Bundesliga action set to resume on 2 June
Austria Bundesliga, latest league to confirm return
Matches in the Austrian league will resume on 2 June, holding games every three days to clear the backlog built up during the coronavirus lockdown.
China reports 3 new COVID-19 cases
China reported 3 new coronavirus cases for May 13, down from 7 cases a day earlier, the country's health commission said.
All of the new cases were locally transmitted - two in the northeastern Liaoning province and one in Jilin province that borders Liaoning, the National Health Commission said in a statement on Thursday.
The number of new asymptomatic cases rose to 12 from 8 a day earlier. The total number of cases now stands at 82,929 while the death toll remained unchanged at 4,633.
Japan to end state of emergency for most regions
Japan is expected to lift the state of emergency for 39 of its 47 prefectures on Thursday (Tokyo is set to be excluded), local media reported. The world's third-largest economy declared a nationwide state of emergency a month ago, urging citizens to reduce person-to-person contact by 80% in an effort to slow the pace of new infections and ease the strain on medical services.
Coronavirus live coverage: welcome
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, which has now registered just over 4.25 million cases and nearly 300,000 deaths.
We'll endeavour to bring you the latest developments and statistics as they emerge throughout the day.