TRUMP UNVEILS HIS 3-PHASE PLAN TO REOPEN A STALLED ECONOMY AMID CORONAVIRUS

As Covid-19 continues to spread across the US, President Donald Trump has

given governors guidance on reopening state economies in the coming months.

The guidelines for "Opening up America Again" outline three phases in which

states can gradually ease their lockdowns.

Mr Trump promised governors they would be handling the process themselves,

with help from the federal government.

The US has 654,301 confirmed cases and 32,186 deaths due to the virus.

Mr Trump has suggested some states could reopen this month.

“We’re starting our life again,” Trump said during his daily press briefing.

“We’re starting rejuvenation of our economy again.”

He added, “This is a gradual process.”

The new guidelines are aimed at easing restrictions in areas with low

transmission of the coronavirus, while holding the line in harder-hit

locations. s

Places with declining infections and strong testing would begin a

three-phase gradual reopening of businesses and schools.

In phase one, for instance, the plan recommends strict social distancing for

all people in public. Gatherings larger than 10 people are to be avoided and

nonessential travel is discouraged.

In phase two, people are encouraged to maximize social distancing and limit

gatherings to no more than 50 people unless precautionary measures are

taken. Travel could resume.

Phase three envisions a return to normalcy for most Americans, with a focus

on identification and isolation of any new infections.

The guidelines recommend that states pass checkpoints that look at new

cases, testing and surveillance data over the prior 14 days before advancing

from one phase to another.

Governors of both parties made clear they will move at their own pace.

COVID-19: UK OUTLINES 5-POINT TEST TO EASE LOCKDOWN

Moving to the target of testing 1 lakh people per day by the end of April,

the Boris Johnson government has outlined five points on which it needs to

be satisfied before considering any relaxation in the lockdown that was

extended on Thursday by at least three more weeks.

The extended lockdown to prevent a ‘second peak’ could last until June,

foreign secretary Dominic Raab said at the daily briefing in Downing Street,

as the number of dead in hospitals from coronavirus rose to 13,729 and the

number of positive cases to 103,093 (out of 327,608 tests carried out).

Raab said the government will need to be satisfied on five specific points

before it considers reviewing the current restrictions.

“First, we must protect the National Health Service’s ability to cope. We

must be confident that we are able to provide sufficient critical care and

specialist treatment right across the UK. Second, we need to see a sustained

and consistent fall in the daily death rates from coronavirus so we are

confident that we have moved beyond the peak”.

“Third, we need to have reliable data from SAGE showing that the rate of

infection is decreasing to manageable levels across the board. Fourth, we

need to be confident that the range of operational challenges, including

testing capacity and PPE, are in hand, with supply able to meet future

demand”.

“Fifth, and this is really crucial, we need to be confident that any

adjustments to the current measures will not risk a second peak of

infections that overwhelm the NHS. The worst thing we could do now is ease

up too soon and allow a second peak of the virus to hit the NHS and hit the

British people”.

BRAZILÂ’S PRESIDENT BOLSONARO FIRES HEALTH MINISTER AFTER CORONAVIRUS DISPUTE

BrazilÂ’s President Jair Bolsonaro fired his health minister on Thursday

after a series of disagreements over government efforts to contain the new

coronavirus.

“I just heard from the President Jair Bolsonaro the news of my dismissal

from the health ministry,” Luiz Henrique Mandetta posted on his verified

Twitter profile, adding that he wished success to his replacement, who is

yet to be named officially.

Mandetta, a doctor, garnered popular support for his pandemic response that

included promotion of broad isolation measures enacted by State governors.

Bolsonaro said he had appointed oncologist Nelson Teich as the country's new

health minister.

Bolsonaro and Mandetta have clashed for weeks over the need for widespread

social isolation in the country to curb the spread of the coronavirus

pandemic. The far-right leader argued the measures are unnecessary and

economically harmful, insisting the outbreak is being blown out of

proportion.

Bolsonaro has downplayed the threat of the coronavirus as a "little flu,"

arguing that Brazil's economy must continue to run normally and defending

the use of unproven drugs like hydroxychloroquine.

Mandetta said in a live webcast with health industry officials on Thursday

that he expected to be fired by Friday, although he tried to minimise fears

that his departure would disrupt efforts to battle the coronavirus pandemic.

Mandetta said he would assist his replacement during the transition in the

ministry.

G7 TO COLLABORATE ON ECONOMY REOPENINGS: WHITE HOUSE

G7 leaders agreed on Thursday to coordinate the reopening of their economies

after the coronavirus pandemic and to ensure “trusted supply chains” in the

future, the White House said.

President Donald Trump hosted a videoconference with other G7 leaders --

Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan -- as the worldÂ’s biggest

economies increasingly look to ending the economic paralysis caused by

attempts to stop the virusÂ’ spread.

“G7 leaders tasked their ministers to work together to prepare all G7

economies to re-open safely and on a foundation that will allow the G7

nations to reestablish economic growth with more resilient health systems

and trusted supply chains,” the White House said in a statement.

“G7 leaders agreed to remain committed to taking every necessary measure to

ensure a strong and coordinated global response to this health crisis and

the associated humanitarian and economic calamity and to launch a strong and

sustainable recovery,” the statement said.

The United States is current chair of the group.

FDA APPROVES SYNTHETIC SWABS FOR COVID-19 TESTING IN UNITED STATES

The US Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday spun synthetic swabs

could be used for coronavirus testing by collecting a sample from the front

of the nose.

This type of testing would allow self-collection by patients, thereby

limiting exposure of healthcare providers, FDA said.

The United States has recorded more fatalities from Covid-19, the

respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus, than any other country,

with 30,961 deaths and 636,937 confirmed cases.

US Cotton, the largest manufacturer of cotton swabs in the country,

developed a polyester-based Q-tip-type swab that is fully compatibility with

Covid-19 testing, FDA said.

“US Cotton plans to produce these new polyester swabs in large quantities to

help meet the needs for coronavirus diagnostic testing,” the regulator said

in a statement.

The finding that spun synthetic swabs could be used for testing is based on

results from a clinical investigation by the FDA, UnitedHealth Group, the

Gates Foundation, and Quantigen.

CHINA SAYS NO PLANS TO LIMIT EXPORT OF ANTI-VIRUS SUPPLIES

China will not restrict exports of medical goods needed to fight the

COVID-19 pandemic, a government spokesman said on Thursday, amid global

tension over scarce masks and ventilators.

China, the biggest maker of surgical masks and other products, announced

last week it would start inspecting exports to make sure they meet quality

standards following Western complaints some test kits and other products

were faulty.

“China has not and will not restrict the export of epidemic prevention

materials,” said a Commerce Ministry spokesman, Gao Feng.

The government hasnÂ’t responded to questions about whether inspections might

increase the time required to fill foreign orders, but Mr. Gao said Beijing

has taken steps to “speed up customs clearance” while “ensuring the export

quality of epidemic prevention materials.”

U.S. President Donald Trump said this month he would try to block

manufacturing giant 3M Co. from exporting N95 masks. 3M warned other

governments might retaliate and said later an agreement was reached to allow

foreign sales.

The Chinese customs agency said last week it would start treating masks,

ventilators, surgical gowns, goggles and other supplies as medical goods.

That requires exporters to submit proof that their products are approved by

regulators in destination countries. The government said goods will be

inspected to confirm they meet quality standards.

IMF WARNS PAKISTANÂ’S BUDGET DEFICIT MAY HIT RECORD HIGH DUE TO CORONAVIRUS

CRISIS

The IMF has warned Pakistan that the cash-strapped countryÂ’s budget deficit

is expected to rise to a record 9.2% of the size of national economy or Rs 4

trillion ($23.7 billion) in the current fiscal year due to the impact of the

coronavirus pandemic.

It said that PakistanÂ’s budget deficit that in pre-COVID-19 situation had

been projected at 7.3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), may increase

to 9.2 per cent. In absolute terms, the deficit will be equal to Rs 4

trillion, higher by Rs 800 billion than previous estimates, it added.

Inflation is projected to remain at 11.1 per cent this year and 8 per cent

next year.

The deficit is expected to rise because of rue shocks as the government has

not yet announced any major increase in budgetary expenditure, according to

finance ministry sources.

For fiscal year 2020-21, the IMF has projected 6.5 per cent budget deficit,

higher by 1 per cent compared with the pre-COVID-19 analysis of the IMF

staff.

The budget deficit is expected to be the highest in PakistanÂ’s history after

the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government booked the highest deficit in

28 years in its first year in power.

The government exceeded its budget deficit target by 82 per cent, which

stood at Rs 3.444 trillion in previous fiscal year 2018-19. The target was

just Rs 1.9 trillion or 5.6 per cent of GDP.

The IMF has already said that PakistanÂ’s economy will fall into recession in

this fiscal year and growth is expected to contract by 1.5 per cent before

it recovers to 2 per cent in the next fiscal year.

It said temporary economic slowdown as part of stabilisation policies

adopted by Pakistan under the USD 6-billion loan programme also contributed

to the post-pandemic economic situation.

CHINA MUST ANSWER ‘HARD QUESTIONS’ ABOUT CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK: UK

Britain and its allies will ask tough questions of China over the

coronavirus outbreak, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Thursday,

adding “we can’t have business as usual after this crisis”.

“We’ll have to ask the hard questions about how it came about and how it

couldn’t have been stopped earlier,” Raab said at a Downing Street press

conference when asked about future relations with Beijing.

DOCTORS H-1B, J-1 VISA RULES STANDING IN WAY OF MEDICAL RESPONSE TO

COVID-19: US LAWMAKERS

Amid the spike in death toll nearing 31,000 in the United States with over 6

lakh coronavirus cases, lawmakers of the country have asked the USCIC to

waive off the restrictions put on medical professionals holding H-1B and J-1

visas, including Indians, that prevent them from providing medical care at

locations other than those specifically approved for their immigration

status.s

A bipartisan group of 40 influential US lawmakers explained that medical

professionals holding H-1B and J-1 visas are not permitted to provide

medical care outside of specifically approved locations. In a letter to Ken

Cuccinelli, Acting Director of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services,

they called for waiving those restrictions during this public health

emergency to increase the number of physicians available to respond to the

pandemic.

The letter stated that the current public health crisis requires a robust

and timely medical response that begins with getting physicians to the front

lines. The lawmakers asserted that health care workers on H-1B and J-1

visas, including physicians in the Conrad State 30 program, which helps

retain US-trained physicians who work in undeserved areas, area key resource

in this process.

“State and local governments as well as health care providers have found

that the site-specificity for work authorization has prevented physicians

holding an H-1B or J-1 status from transferring to hospitals and facilities

that are overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients or are experiencing staff

shortages due to quarantine requirements,” said the letter signed by 27

members of the House of Representatives and Senators.

RUSSIA CLASHES WITH EUROPEANS OVER SYRIA CHEMICAL WEAPONS

SyriaÂ’s close ally Russia clashed with European nations in the UN Security

Council on Wednesday over a report from the global chemical weapons watchdog

blaming the Syrian air force for a series of attacks using sarin and

chlorine on a rebel-held town in 2017.

Moscow dismissed it as “baseless” and the Europeans demanded accountability

for the governmentÂ’s action.

An investigative team of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical

Weapons said in a 82-page report issued April 8 that the Syrian air force

dropped bombs containing either chlorine or sarin on a hospital and open

farmland in the central town of Latamneh, injuring over 70 people and

killing at least three — a surgeon and two others.

The exchanges between Russia and the Europeans took place at the monthly

meeting on SyriaÂ’s chemical weapons, which was closed. Russia, Germany,

Britain and Estonia distributed the statements of their ambassadors.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said U.N. disarmament chief Izumi Nakamitusu

briefed the council, including on the findings of the OPCW report, and

stressed that they were “deeply distressing.”

Dujarric said Nakamitsu reiterated Secretary-General Antonio GuterresÂ’

position “that the use of chemical weapons by anyone, anywhere, is

intolerable and impunity for their use is equally unacceptable. It is

imperative to identify and hold accountable all those who have used chemical

weapons.” But Syria was not named.

The investigative team concluded that “there are reasonable grounds” to

believe the perpetrators in Latamneh of the use of sarin on March 24 and 30,

and chlorine on March 25, 2017, were part of the Syrian Arab Air Force, OPCW

coordinator Santiago Oñate-Laborde said.

CHINA'S VIRUS-HIT ECONOMY GROWS AT SLOWEST RATE IN DECADES

The Chinese economy shrunk at its fastest ever pace in the first quarter of

the year, as factories and businesses were forced to close.

The world's second biggest economy contracted 6.8% according to its official

data released on Friday.

The financial toll the coronavirus is having on the Chinese economy will be

a huge concern to other countries.

China is an economic powerhouse as a major consumer and producer of goods

and services.

Last year, it saw healthy economic growth of 6.4% in the first quarter, a

period when it was locked in a trade war with the US.

In the last two decades, China has seen average economic growth of around 9%

a year, although experts have regularly questioned the accuracy of its

economic data.

AFRICA TO ROLL OUT MORE THAN 1 MILLION CORONAVIRUS TESTS

More than 1 million coronavirus tests will be rolled out starting next week

in Africa to address the “big gap” in assessing the true number of cases on

the continent, the head of the African Centres for Disease Control and

Prevention said Thursday, while one projection estimates more than 10

million severe cases of the virus in the next six months.

“Maybe 15 million tests” will be required in Africa over the next three

months, John Nkengasong said.

The new initiative to dramatically accelerate testing comes as the continent

of 1.3 billion people braces for its turn in the pandemic that has rolled

from China to Europe and the US and now beyond.

Experts have said Africa is weeks behind Europe and the US but the rise in

cases has looked alarmingly similar.

Africa has suffered in the global race to obtain testing kits and other

badly needed medical equipment. While the number of virus cases across the

continent was above 17,000 on Thursday, health officials have said the

testing shortage means more are out there.

South Africa, the most assertive African nation in testing, has carried out

90,000 tests so far, according to its health ministry. ItÂ’s not immediately

clear how many people have been tested across Africa.

One projection over the next six months shows more than 10 million severe

cases of the virus, Michel Yao, the World Health OrganizationÂ’s emergency

operations manager in Africa, told a separate briefing.