Global surge in coronavirus cases raise fears about second wave

BRAZIL

It reported 30,412 new cases on Thursday, bringing its cumulative total to above 800,000, the second highest after the United States.

Shops in the country's two largest cities, epicentre of a still surging epidemic in Brazil, reopened on Thursday, just a day after the most populous state Sao Paulo reported a record number of COVID-19 deaths for the second day.

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EUROPE

The initial wave of transmission has passed its peak everywhere except for Poland and Sweden, according to an analysis by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

But the risk of a second wave big enough to require lockdowns to be reimposed is moderate to high, it said, and fending it off will depend on the gradual easing of restrictions and how people stick to them.

In Britain, one of the worst hit countries, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday the rate of infection was slowing to "manageable levels" but cautioned restrictions could re-imposed. By Tuesday the death toll neared 52,000, according to a Reuters tally of official data sources.

French President Emmanuel Macron is due to address the nation on Sunday to discuss the next steps of a lockdown, a month after restrictions started to be lifted. With the French economy expected to contract by 11% in 2020, many, including in the government, are calling for a quick return to normal.