* China reported two new coronavirus cases for May 6, unchanged from the same number of increases the day before, data from the national health authority showed on Thursday (May 7). China's total number of coronavirus cases now stands at 82,885, while the death toll remained unchanged at 4,633, the national health authority said.
* The number of people who have died after contracting the new coronavirus in France increased by 278 or 1.1% to 25,809 on Wednesday, just eight fewer than in Spain, which saw its virus toll rise by 204 or 0.8% to 25,817, official data showed. The number of people in hospital with coronavirus also fell again, to 23,983 from 25,775, continuing an uninterrupted three-week fall.
* Russia on Thursday reported 11,231 new cases of the novel coronavirus, a record daily rise that pushed the national case total to 177,160. Russia's coronavirus taskforce said 88 people had died overnight, bringing the coronavirus death toll to 1,625. Moscow, the worst-hit area, also reported a record overnight case increase of 6,703 new cases.
* Singapore has registered 741 new coronavirus infections, its health ministry said on Thursday, taking the city-state's total number of COVID-19 cases to 20,939. The vast majority of the new cases are migrant workers living in dormitories, the health ministry said in a statement. Five are permanent residents.
* The reproduction rate of the novel coronavirus in Germany is currently estimated at 0.65, the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases said on Thursday. The rate is one of the factors that are closely monitored when deciding on a further loosening of contact restrictions.
* Thailand on Thursday reported three new coronavirus cases, bringing its total to 2,992, a senior official said. Thailand has recorded 55 fatalities from the coronavirus since the outbreak began in Januaray. Authorities have been cautiously allowing some businesses to reopen this week after weeks of near-lockdown.
* Australia's two most populous states on Thursday refused to allow a one-day reprieve from strict limits on personal movement for Mother's Day this weekend, even as the country's rate of new coronavirus cases remains low. The premiers of New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria said the states' roughly 10 million residents, 40% of the country's population, would have to stick to existing restrictions on movement on Mother's Day, which is celebrated nationally on Sunday.
* Rising Sino-US tension is problematic and undermines the broad multinational cooperation needed to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, the European Union's ambassador to China Nicolas Chapuis said on Thursday.
* The European Union's 27 leaders on Wednesday gave their "unequivocal support" for the six Balkan countries to eventually become members of the bloc and offered more financial support to help the region deal with the coronavirus crisis aftermath. After a summit by video with the leaders of Serbia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and North Macedonia, EU chiefs promised a "robust economic and investment plan for the region" in their final declaration.
* The Netherlands has joined several European countries in announcing the easing of its coronavirus lockdown, outlining a four-month plan to phase out social restrictions if the virus remains under control. The lifting of measures will begin next week and will be expanded in stages through Sept. 1, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Wednesday evening. He said the measures could be ramped back up, however, if there is a resurgence of infections.
* Economic activity in France picked up slightly over the last two weeks as the country prepares to emerge from a coronavirus lockdown, but it remains a third below normal levels, the INSEE official statistics agency said on Thursday. Activity in the euro zone's second-biggest economy is currently down 33% from normal levels compared with 35% two weeks ago, INSEE said.
* Bank of England forecasts that Britain could be facing the biggest economic slump for 300 years are a "real wake up call", Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said on Thursday. In what it called an illustrative scenario, the BoE said it saw a plunge of 14% in Britain's economy in 2020 followed by 15% bounce-back in 2021.
* The Swiss government expects the cost of unemployment benefits and short-time working compensation caused by the coronavirus crisis to rise to around CHF20 billion (US$20.51 billion) this year from CHF6 to 7 billion normally, an official said on Thursday.
* Poland's presidential election will be held in June at the earliest, the country's Deputy Prime Minister Jacek Sasin said on Thursday, hours after the governing nationalists decided that voting would be postponed from May 10.
* The International Monetary Fund's executive board has approved a disbursement of US$189.5 million for Tajikistan to help it "meet urgent balance of payments and fiscal needs stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic", the IMF said on Thursday.
* Colombia has declared a second state of emergency to support sectors of the economy that will remain shut down for an extended period to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus, President Ivan Duque said on Wednesday. The state of economic emergency allows the president to issue decrees without prior authorization from the Andean country's congress during times of crisis or a threat to Colombia's security.
* Mexico's health ministry on Wednesday reported 1,609 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infections and 197 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 27,634 cases and 2,704 deaths. The government has said the real number of infected people is significantly higher than the confirmed cases.
* Five US Senate Republicans introduced a bill on Wednesday seeking a review of US participation in the World Health Organization and other international institutions, after President Donald Trump's administration suspended US contributions to the U.N. health agency and accused it of mishandling the coronavirus pandemic.
* The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday said its executive board has approved US$739 mln in emergency financing to help Kenya respond to the sudden economic shock caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic. The IMF said it was in close contact with Kenyan authorities and stood ready to provide policy advice and further support, as needed.
* The US special representative for Afghanistan will call for a reduction in Afghan violence, the start of intra-Afghan peace talks and cooperation against the new coronavirus on a trip to Qatar, India and Pakistan, the US State Department said on Wednesday. The department said in a statement that US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad had left on Tuesday and would meet representatives of the Taliban in Doha as well as officials of the Indian and Pakistani governments during travel to New Delhi and Islamabad.
* Iceland has all but eliminated the coronavirus outbreak as 97% of infected patients have recovered and only two new cases have been confirmed in the last week, the government said in a statement on Wednesday. After declaring its first confirmed cases in early March, the north Atlantic island nation went into a lockdown, closing schools and banning large public gatherings, and it put in place a rigorous testing and tracing strategy to curb the outbreak.
* Iraqi lawmakers approved a new government on Wednesday after six months without one as parties squabbled until the last minute over Cabinet seats in backroom deals. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, Iraq's intelligence chief and a former journalist, will head the new government. He will begin his term without a full Cabinet, however, after several ministerial candidates were rejected.
