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Coronavirus world live updates: Melania Trump models face mask

With more than 450,000 Americans infected and the death toll surpassing 16,000, Melania Trump is urging people to wear masks in an effort to stop the spread.

Victoria CrawVictoria Craw
@Victoria_Craw
less than 2 min read
April 9, 2020 - 8:12PM
Stop the coronavirus spread checklist

The International Monetary Fund has warned the coronavirus pandemic will lead to the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. 

It comes as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved out of intensive care in "extremely good spirits" and leaders plead for citizens around the world to stay at home over the Easter holidays. 

MORE:  Follow the latest virus news here

Globally, there have been more than 1.5 million cases of COVID-19 recorded with nearly 100,000 deaths, mainly in Italy, Spain, France and the UK. 

Follow our live, rolling coverage of the global pandemic below. 

Live Updates

Melania Trump models face mask

Melania Trump has modelled a face mask as part of a public service announcement in the US.

As the coronavirus continues to rip through the US – with the country surpassing 450,000 infections and 16,000 deaths – people are being urged to wear masks.

"As the CDC continues to study the spread of COVID-19, they recommend people wear cloth face coverings in public settings where social distancing measures can be difficult to maintain, such as grocery stores and pharmacies. Remember, this does not replace the importance of social distancing. It's another recommended guideline to keep us all safe," the First Lady said ina video tweet.

She urged fellow Americans to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommended coronavirus guidelines on masks.

Global cases near1.5 million

The global number of cases from COVID-19 is on track to hit 1.5 million according to data from John Hopkins University.

The US-based centre said global cases were sitting at 1.498 million at the time of writing with just under 90,000 deaths. The real number of cases is likely significantly higher due to untested or asymptomatic cases.

The US has recorded the most cases at more than 430,000 followed by Spain, Italy, Germany, France and China. Italy has recorded the most deaths with more than 17,000 followed by Spain, France and the UK.

New York city COVID comes from Europe, not Asia

New research shows coronavirus began to circulate in New York city by mid-February and is likely to have come from Europe, rather than Asia.

It's believed travellers from the continent brought the virus to the US, according to a New York Times report quoting researchers at Mount Sinai school of medicine.

“The majority is clearly European,” said geneticist Harm van Bakel who has published a study that is awaiting peer review. A separate team involved in similar work found strikingly similar conclusions.

President Trump banned travel from China by the end of January but only shut down European travel in mid-March.

The researchers also found as many as seven different strains of the virus circulating in New York and believe there are more mutations of the disease out there. Read the fascinating article here.

New York is the centre of the US coronavirus outbreak at present. The country has more than 430,000 cases and has suffered more than 5000 deaths.

The Federal Reserve has announced it will provide up to US$ 2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy.

'Worst economic fallout since the Great Depression'

International Monetary Fund managing director Kristalina Georgieva has described the scale of the COIVD-19 economic crisis as "the worst economic fallout since the Great Depression."

In a speech on Thursday, the IMF leader said the world was being confronted with a "crisis like no other".

"Covid-19 has disrupted our social and economic order at lightning speed and on a scale that we have not seen in living memory. The virus is causing tragic loss of life, and the lockdown needed to fight it has affected billions of people. What was normal just a few weeks ago—going to school, going to work, being with family and friends—is now a huge risk," she said.

The comments came on the same day as the US noted another spike in unemployment figures meaning 16.8 million Americans have been thrown onto the unemployment rolls in just three weeks.

Global growth has turned sharply negative with the IMF predicting 170 of its member states will experience negative income growth this year – a drastic turnaround from three months ago.

"The bleak outlook applies to advanced and developing economies alike. This crisis knows no boundaries. Everybody hurts," she said, adding that the crisis is a test for humanity.

Spain records drop in cases and deaths

Spain's health authorities said virus infection numbers and deaths have dropped again after two days of gains, in what is hoped to be the start of an overall slowdown.

The health ministry said 5,756 new cases and 683 new deaths over the previous 24-hour period. That is compared to new 6,180 cases and 757 new deaths on Wednesday.

Overall, Spain has 152,446 infections and 15,238 fatalities since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, situating it as one of the world’s hardest-hit countries along with the United States and Italy.

Over 52,000 patients have also recovered in Spain, as pressure has eased slightly on its hospitals.

However Spain is struggling to gauge the extent of the outbreak due to a lag in general testing. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has asked for a second two-week extension to the country's lockdown.

Germany to roll out antibody tests

Germany’s national disease control centre will start conducting blood tests to determine how many people are immune to COVID-19 or have been infected but asymptomatic.

Robert Koch Institute boss Lothar Wieler said antibody tests will be carried out on blood from donors around the country. The institute will process 5000 samples every two weeks with the first results due early May.

Meanwhile another study will look at blood from those in infection "hot spots" in the country. A third will look at a sample of 15,000 from across the nation.

Germany has been an anomaly among Western nations due to an extremely low death toll, thought to be due to a range of factors including voracious testing, a younger than average age of infected patients and proactive hospitalisation and treatment in some areas.

Germany has recorded 113,000 cases of the virus and 2349 deaths, according to John Hopkins data.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has said the figures give grounds for “cautious optimism” but the situation is “fragile” and has urged people to stay home this Easter.

“We must keep this up over Easter and the days afterward, because we could very, very quickly destroy what we have achieved,” she said.

– With wires

Kate and Wills host virtual drop in

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have hosted a virtual drop in with the children of key workers in Britain's National Health Service.

Kate and William popped up on screen at Casterton Primary School where children were wearing Easter bunny ears and had drawn pictures of their parents.

Wills commented on the "strong look" the children had going on and the pair said they should be very proud of the work their parents were doing.

https://twitter.com/KensingtonRoyal/status/1247992637367468033/video/1

William's father Prince Charles has recovered from coronavirus and his grandmother sent a message to the UK and Commonwealth urging people to stick together to fight the disease.

Prince Charles and Camilla have also been reunited after their periods of isolation and are celebrating their 15th wedding anniversary today.

Boris Johnson moves out of intensive care

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved out of intensive care back to a ward, Downing Street has confirmed.

’The Prime Minister has been moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery," his office said in a statement.

"He is in extremely good spirits."

He had been treated with oxygen but is not on a ventilator. More than 61,000 people have been infected with the virus in the UK with more than 7000 deaths.

Mr Raab thanked people for taking part in the lockdown but said "we're not done yet".

It came amid questions about when a lockdown might be raised. Police in England's Greater Manchester area issued a warning the force had to break up 660 parties last weekend.

Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said "each and every one of us need take this seriously".

Police said there were more than 1100 breaches of virus rules last week including 494 house parties – some of which featured DJs, fireworks and bouncy castles, and street parties.

Italy's 'youngest patient' recovers from virus

A two-month old baby who is thought to be Italy's youngest COVID-19 patient has been released from hospital after recovering from the disease.

The baby had previously suffered a fever but been released along with her mother who had fought off pneumonia.

Italy has suffered from more than 17,669 COVID-19 related deaths – the highest toll of any country in the world. However daily death rates are slowing from a high of 969 recorded in March.

The country may soon start to ease distancing measures in some places. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte told the BBC the country would likely pick certain sectors to restart and monitor progress in accordance with scientific advice.

The country went into lockdown on March 9, with all non-essential businesses including car, clothing and furniture making slowing down two weeks later.

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Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/world/coronavirus/global/coronavirus-world-live-updates/live-coverage/be0bf55d46ba36a50b1ddfea4bffebcb