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Coronavirus: US records nearly 55,000 cases, largest daily increase by any country

The United States reported nearly 55,000 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, the largest daily increase any country has ever reported, according to a Reuters tally.A surge in coronavirus cases across the United States over the past week has put President Donald Trump’s handling of the crisis under the microscope and led several governors to halt plans to reopen their states after strict lockdowns.The daily US tally stood at 54,879 late Thursday, topping the previous single-day record of 54,771 set by Brazil on June 19.Visit our dedicated coronavirus site here for all the latest updates.Just two weeks ago, the United States was reporting about 22,000 new cases a day. It has now reported more than 40,000 cases for seven straight days and broken records for new cases three days in a row, according to the tally.New infections rose in 37 out of 50 US states in the past 14 days compared with the two weeks prior in early June, according to a Reuters analysis.Florida reported the biggest increase of any state so far on Thursday, recording over 10,000 new cases in a single day. With 21 million residents, the state has reported more new daily coronavirus cases than any European country had at the height of their outbreaks.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned earlier this week the daily increase in new US cases could reach 100,000 without nationwide measures to slow the rate.While testing rates have increased, so has the percentage of positive results. Hospitalizations have also skyrocketed.Nationally, 7 percent of coronavirus diagnostic tests came back positive last week, up from 5 percent the prior week, according to a Reuters analysis. Arizona’s positivity test rate was 24 percent last week, Florida’s was 16 percent. Nevada, South Carolina, and Texas were all at 15 percent, the analysis found.Read more:UAE announces 400 new coronavirus cases, one deathCoronavirus parties held by US college students to infect one another, win moneyCoronavirus: Pupils in England to go back to school in September
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: US records nearly 55,000 cases, largest daily increase by any country

Lebanon's talks with IMF are on hold until reforms begin: Finance minister

Lebanon's Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni said on Friday that talks with the International Monetary Fund are on hold until economic reforms begin and an agreement on the Lebanese side on a common approach for calculating losses, Reuters reported Wazni as telling the local al-Joumhuria. The state official said he will remain in contact with the IMF until negotiations resume.“What is being worked on today is defining the losses and their size in all sectors,” Wazni said. “We must come up with a unified approach agreed upon with all political forces and in coordination between the government and parliament.”“...We must agree as soon as possible.”Lebanon entered into talks with the IMF in May as part of a last-ditch effort to save its fast-sinking economy and has not seen a crisis of this scale since the end of its 15-year civil war in 1990. But talks have been rocky as there have been disagreements over the size of losses, with the government, central bank, commercial banks, and Members of Parliament unable to come to a decision.A parliamentary fact-finding committee said on Wednesday losses in the system were between a quarter and half the amount set out in a government recovery plan that was submitted to the IMF.The IMF has said the government’s numbers appear to be about the right order of magnitude.The economy has rapidly deteriorated since mid-2019, and now inflation has seen the value of the local currency plummet and the purchasing power of Lebanese sink. Unemployment and hunger are on the rise as poverty rates grow steadily.Read more: Lebanon's supermarket shelves left empty amid panic buyingThe country has for years failed to make reforms that were required for donors to receive international aid. This time, foreign governments, including the US, and lending agencies have warned that there will be no aid unless reforms are made across a number of sectors.Recently, the secretary general of the Finance Minister Alain Bifani who was on the team negotiating with the IMF resigned, saying he was protesting the way leaders were handling the crisis. Before that, another member of the negotiation team, Henri Chaoul, resigned saying he saw no real will to reform. In an interview with Al Arabiya English, Chaoul said “Literally no one is doing their job.”The deterioration of the economy has accelerated this week, with the value of the lira hitting new lows and power cuts increasing in the country that has for years failed to provide 24-hour electricity to its citizens.Read more:Expecting the collapse: Meet Lebanon’s young political party ready to take powerOutrage in Lebanon after video of three men sexually assaulting young Syrian boyLebanese seek to fly out of dire economic situation as Beirut airport reopens-with Reuters
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Lebanon's talks with IMF are on hold until reforms begin: Finance minister