(Bloomberg) -- Global coronavirus cases approached the 3 million mark, though Spain and France reported the fewest deaths in more than a month and the rise in U.S. infections trailed the one-week average.Italy will ease its lockdown in just over a week, a key test in efforts across Europe to broadly restart public life. New York, the center of the U.S. outbreak, outlined reopening plans as well.The Bank of Japan will likely step up its asset purchases on Monday in an effort to stop the coronavirus from destabilizing the financial system. Singapore, which has one of Asia’s smallest populations, surpassed Japan with more than 13,000 cases.Key DevelopmentsVirus Tracker: Total cases 2.9 million; deaths pass 206,000Singapore becomes Asia’s most infected nation after China, IndiaTale of two economies will determine post-lockdown growthElevator quandary underscores reopening struggleThailand tourism revival depends on finding a vaccineAustralia begins using contact-tracing appSubscribe to a daily update on the virus from Bloomberg’s Prognosis team here. Click VRUS on the terminal for news and data on the coronavirus. For a look back at this week’s top stories from QuickTake, click here.BOJ Set to Ramp Up Asset Buying in Virus Fight (7:45 a.m. HK)The Bank of Japan will likely step up its asset purchases on Monday in an effort to stop the coronavirus destabilizing the financial system or triggering a wave of bankruptcies that could make any economic recovery painfully slow.The BOJ kicks off a packed week of central bank action with a shortened one-day meeting amid speculation it is likely to boost corporate debt purchases and make a bold announcement on government bond buying.H.K. Considers Easing Some Measures: Sing Tao (7:41 a.m.)Hong Kong’s government would consider relaxing mandatory quarantine controls on mainland Chinese visitors, allowing civil servants to return to the office and easing restrictions on some business sectors, should the number of new cases continue to be low or remain at zero, Sing Tao Daily reported, citing unidentified people.Trump Backs Health Chief Azar (6:20 a.m. HK)Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar is “doing an excellent job,” President Donald Trump tweeted as he knocked down reports the cabinet member is being replaced. Trump said stories about Azar’s future were “Fake News” intended to “create the perception of chaos & havoc in the minds of the public.” heDow Jones, citing six people familiar with the discussions, said it’s unclear about the timing of Azar’s departure as the White House is reluctant to change the agency’s leadership amid the pandemic.Azar oversaw the U.S. virus response until late February, when Trump named Vice President Mike Pence to lead the task force for the outbreak.Beef Shortages Loom as Plants Close (6:45 a.m. HK)Plant shutdowns are leaving the U.S. dangerously close to meat shortages as coronavirus outbreaks spread to suppliers.Almost a third of U.S. pork capacity is down, the first big poultry plants closed on Friday and experts are warning that shortages are just weeks away. Brazil, the world’s No. 1 shipper of chicken and beef, saw its first major closure with the halt of a poultry plant owned by JBS SA, the world’s biggest meat company. Key operations are also down in Canada.Read the full storyU.S. Caps Values In Loan Program (5:30 p.m. NY)The U.S. Small Business Administration is capping the value of loans banks can arrange under a relief program that restarts Monday. The move reflects concerns that the biggest banks could again dominate the lending and prevent money from getting to the mom-and-pop shops that need it the most.The SBA sent an email to lenders on Sunday limiting the maximum dollar amount of loans each bank can issue at 10% of funding authority of thePaycheck Protection Program. The goal of the cap is “to ensure equitable access,” according to a copy seen by Bloomberg News.Read the full story.South Africa Gets Cuba’s Help (4:30 p.m. NY)A group of 217 Cuban medical professionals, including infectious diseases specialists, headed to South Africa after the government requested help from its long-time ally.Cuba “is known for its disaster preparedness and its consistent deployment of medical brigades for disaster relief wherever required,” Health Minister Zwelini Mkhize said.Some of the professionals fought other outbreaks such as cholera in Haiti in 2010 and Ebola in West Africa in 2013, he said. South Africa reported 185 new infections on Saturday, bringing the total to 34,456. Deaths are at eight.U.S. Cases Rise 3.3%, Below One-Week Average (4 p.m. NY)U.S. coronavirus cases increased 3.3% from Saturday to 957,016, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg News. The national increase in cases was below the average daily increase of 3.6% over the past week.New York reported 5,902 new cases, down from 10,553 a day earlier, boosting the total to 288,045, while new deaths fell to 367, for an overall toll to 16,966.Singapore Is Third-Most Infected in Asia (3:10 p.m. NY)Singapore reported 931 new cases of the virus Sunday, making the island-nation the biggest cluster in the region, after the world’s two most populous countries.The country, with 5.7 million inhabitants, surpassed Japan with more than 13,000 cases. The majority of infections are among migrant workers living in dormitories. Its citizens and permanent residents made up just 15 of the new cases, the government said in a statement.Read the full story.Italy to Begin Easing Lockdown on May 4 (2:50 p.m. NY)Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said Italy will begin lifting a nationwide lockdown on May 4, giving a partial respite to businesses paralyzed by weeks of measures to stop the outbreak.Construction and manufacturing will be the first sectors allowed to restart, Conte said in a briefing in Rome. Retailers and museums can reopen on May 18, he said. Restaurants and cafes will remain closed until at least June 1.Italy reported 260 deaths for the 24-hour period -- the fewest since March 14 -- compared with 415 the day before. That brings the total number of fatalities to 26,644. Confirmed cases now total 197,675. There were 2,324 new cases compared with 2,357 a day earlier.Jordan to Extend Shutdown (2:45 p.m. NY)Jordan extended its shutdown for a majority of the public sector until the end of Ramadan, on May 23, Minister of State for Media Affairs Amjad Adaileh said.Some ministries and public agencies will resume work within days, with few staff, he said. Public transport will resume only for those who have permits as the nation remains under a curfew, he said.Cuomo Outlines Phased Reopening (2:45 p.m. NY)Upstate New York could start reopening for business as soon as May 15, Governor Andrew Cuomo said. New York City is more densely populated and connected to Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut, making it more complicated to reopen soon, he said.The first phase would include construction and manufacturing activities, and be by region. After the initial re-openings, the state would pause for two weeks to assess progress, by monitoring new hospitalizations, cases and testing for antibodies.Businesses will be allowed to reopen depending on how essential they are and how much risk of transmission they pose, Cuomo said.Cuomo said earlier that new deaths fell to 367, the fewest since March 31. The state has about 10% of the world’s infections.Read the full storyGates Focused on Vaccine (2:30 p.m. NY)Bill Gates is funding production of the seven most promising ideas for a vaccine as he refocuses his philanthropy on the coronavirus.“If everything went perfectly, we’d be in scale manufacturing within a year,” Gates said on CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS.” “It could be as long as two years.”The philanthropist and co-founder of Microsoft Corp. said his best-case scenario for a phased reopening of the economy is to “pick the high-value activities like school, manufacturing and construction, and figure out a way to do those with masks and distancing.”Read the full storyFully Fund U.S. Loans: BofA CEO (2:25 p.m. NY)Bank of America Corp. Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan said the U.S. small business loan program should be fully funded, rather than forcing companies to scramble for cash. Eliminate the “first come, first serve” aspect, Moynihan said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”The $349 billion for small businesses in the stimulus package ran out in less than two weeks. The loans become grants if firms keep their payroll. A second package, including a top-up of $320 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program was signed into law last week.The U.S. economy will return to growth in the fourth quarter, and will get back to the same size it was prior to the pandemic by late 2021, Moynihan said.Read the full storyFrance Has Fewest Deaths Since March (1:10 p.m. NY)France’s reported the smallest rise in deaths since March 25 and the amount of Covid-19 patients in intensive care decreased. Fatalities rose by 242 to 22,856, according to the Health Ministry. New cases increased by 1,129, to 191,743.The government is preparing to ease its confinement after May 11, with Prime Minister Edouard Philippe set to outline how to begin the return to normal life on Tuesday.EU Fund Needed Now: Gentiloni (12:30 p.m. NY)A European Union recovery fund worth about 1.5 trillion euros ($1.62 trillion) needs to be available by mid-September and include loans and grants, EU Economy and Financial Affairs Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said.“We cannot wait two years, like it happened between the end of the World War II and the Marshall Plan,” Gentiloni said on Italy’s Rai 3 television. EU leaders inched toward a deal on rebuilding plans during a video conference on Thursday, but haven’t resolved differences over whether states will get grants or loans.State Hotlines Called on Disinfectants (11:50 a.m. NY)New Jersey and Michigan emergency centers were flooded with calls last week after Trump discussed the use of disinfectants to deal with Covid-19, the states’ governors said.“We had hundreds of calls come into our emergency hotline at our health department asking if it was right to ingest Clorox or alcohol cleaning products, whether that was going to help them fight the virus,” Republican Governor Larry Hogan of Maryland said on ABC’s “This Week.”“We have seen an increase in numbers of people calling poison control,” Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan said on the same broadcast. “It’s really important that everyone with a platform disseminate medically accurate information.”Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force, said Trump understands that disinfectant isn’t a treatment for Covid-19. “It bothers me that this is still in the news cycle,” Birx told CNN.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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