A tourist was a mask to help avoid getting coronavirus as she stands next to the statue of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in Parliament Square in London, March 11, 2020. (PHOTO / AP)

LONDON / WASHINGTON / BRUSSELS / PANAMA CITY / ROME / GENEVA / PHILADELPHIA / NEW YORK / SARAJEVO / MADRID/ LA PAZ / VIENNA / ALGIERS / LISBON / KINSHASA / BUCHAREST / NICOSIA / TUNIS / AMSTERDAM / WARSAW / PARIS / BERLIN / CHISINAU - Britain launched a 30 billion-pound (US$39 billion) economic stimulus plan just hours after the Bank of England slashed interest rates, a double-barrelled package aimed at warding off the risk of a coronavirus recession.

British Finance Minister Rishi Sunak said the economy faced a “significant impact” from the spread of the virus, and he would do whatever it takes to protect the economy from the impact of coronavirus.

Britain’s health system and other public services would receive an extra 5 billion pounds to help counter the spread of coronavirus.

Earlier in the day, a spokeswoman said that Britain's parliament has no plans to shut over coronavirus, after Junior health minister Nadine Dorries tested positive for the virus and another lawmaker was advised to stay at home as a precaution. 

Dorries said she was self-isolating and had taken "all the advised precautions" as soon as she was told of her diagnosis.

The Times reported that Dorries met hundreds of people in Parliament in the past week and attended a reception with Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Lawmakers have expressed concern that the aging parliamentary estate is ill-equipped to deal with an outbreak of the virus, and that lawmakers pose a higher risk because they travel a lot and meet people.

On Tuesday, the death toll in the United Kingdom from the coronavirus outbreak rose to six, British health officials said, adding that the number of people who had tested positive for the virus had risen to 373 from 319.

Pope holds his first ever virtual general audience

Pope Francis, holed up in the Vatican by Italy’s coronavirus epidemic, held his first virtual general audience on Wednesday, thanking medical staff but urging the world not to forget the plight of Syrian refugees.

Francis and ten priests, some of whom translate his words into other languages - all sitting in a horseshoe pattern of chairs with space between them - gathered in the official papal library for an audience that was streamed on the internet and broadcast live on television.

Merkel says extra steps needed

Up to 70% of the population is likely to be infected with the coronavirus that is currently spreading around the world, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, adding that since there was currently no cure the focus had to be on slowing its spread.

Merkel promised to do what was needed to counter the effects of the coronavirus and that would happen in agreement with European partners.

She believed that the EU fiscal monitoring framework has enough flexibility built in to cope even with extraordinary situations like the coronavirus epidemic.

Separately, German Health Minister Jens Spahn Sealing said that sealing borders to prevent the spread of the coronavirus would not work and rejected calls to follow neighbor Austria in denying entry to visitors from Italy.

Spahn said the focus of Germany’s current approach to the epidemic was to slow the virus’s spread to minimize the peak burden on the country’s health system.

The start of the university term in the southern German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg will be delayed by a month until April 20 in order to help slow the spread of the coronavirus epidemic, newspaper Handelsblatt reported on Wednesday.

Germany has reported 1,296 cases of the virus, and two deaths, the Robert Koch Institute said late on Tuesday.

ALSO READ: Head of EU Parliament Sassoli in self-isolation as precaution

German Health Minister Jens Spahn arrives for the weekly cabinet meeting of the German government at the chancellery in Berlin, March 11, 2020. (MARKUS SCHREIBER / AP)

The virus is in Germany, it is in Europe ... It will still spread even if you close all the borders. Sooner or later you have to let people in or out and then it starts spreading again.

Jens Spahn, Germany's health minister

Italy announces US$28b Plan, toll jumps 36%

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s government is ready to spend as much as 25 billion euros (US$28.3 billion) on stimulus measures to shield the economy from Europe’s worst outbreak of the coronavirus.

Finance Minister Roberto Gualtieri said the cabinet is likely to approve a first package worth about 12.5 billion euros by Friday. 

The rest will be a reserve to pay for any further measures, he said in a joint press conference with Conte on Wednesday. 

Gualtieri said the government will ask parliament to increase the country’s deficit targets by 20 billion euros.

The death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus in Italy has jumped by 168 to 631, an increase of 36 percent, the Civil Protection Agency said on Tuesday.

The total number of cases in the country rose to 10,149 from a previous 9,172, an increase of 10.7 percent.

Minister condemns sensational reporting on COVID-19 in Malawi

Malawi's Minister of Information, Communication and Technology Mark Botomani has warned the press in Malawi against sensational reporting on issues involving COVID-19.

Ukraine to ban mass gatherings, close schools for three weeks

Ukraine’s government decided on Wednesday to ban mass gatherings and close schools for three weeks in a bid to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Ukraine has reported one case of coronavirus so far.

Belgium has first coronavirus death, briefly holds liner

Belgian authorities held a cruise ship with more than 3,000 people on board in the port of Zeebrugge on Wednesday morning over suspected cases of the coronavirus after the country reported its first death from the disease.

Carl Decaluwe, governor of West Flanders province, banned anyone from leaving the ship because of two passengers who had been in contact with an infected German and were now in quarantine.

By early afternoon he gave the all-clear for all passengers except the two to disembark to visit nearby Bruges after doctors had assessed the situation. The two passengers will remain in quarantine.

Elsewhere in Belgium, a 90-year-old Belgian woman became the country’s first coronavirus fatality.

Belgium now has 314 confirmed cases of the coronavirus. Health authorities said hospitals were treating increasing numbers of patients with respiratory infections.

Swiss funnel Italian border traffic 

Switzerland is shuttering nine secondary border crossings with Italy and directing traffic to main routes to slow the spread of the new coronavirus while still letting workers get to their jobs, the government said on Wednesday.

“The border to Italy remains open for cross-border commuters” with work permits, said the Swiss government, whose border guards have been doing spot checks and urging travelers from Italy on non-essential trips to return home.

Hungary curbs inbound travel, bans public gatherings over coronavirus

Hungary on Wednesday banned inbound travel from Italy, South Korea, Iran and China for non-Hungarians in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The ban on travel from the four most heavily-affected countries will come into effect immediately, Premier Viktor Orban’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, told a news briefing.

Hungarian universities will also be closed and public gatherings of more than 100 people indoors and 500 people outdoors will be banned, he said.

Serbia bars indoor gatherings, closes some border crossings 

Serbia barred all indoor gatherings and said it would close some small border crossings and step up health controls at others to stem the spread of the coronavirus infection.

President Aleksandar Vucic said the measures were agreed at a meeting on Wednesday between top government and public health officials, as the number of people diagnosed with the disease rose from four to 12 in a day.

Slovenia to close some Italy border crossings

Slovenia will close some border crossings with Italy and perform health checks at those remaining open in order to combat the spread of the coronavirus, Health Minister Ales Sabeder said on Wednesday.

The number of confirmed cases of the virus in Slovenia rose to 47, the minister told a news conference. The total reported on Tuesday was 34.

Albanian woman, 73, dies of coronavirus

An Albanian woman of 73 with a heart condition who had returned from neighboring Italy has become the country’s first coronavirus fatality, the health ministry said on Wednesday.

There were 11 documented other cases of the virus in the country, it said.

Poland to close schools as of Monday due to coronavirus

All Polish schools will close starting on Monday to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Wednesday, adding that universities, museums and cinemas will also be closed.

Poland has confirmed 26 cases of the coronavirus. No one has died.

On Tuesday, Poland's Defence Ministry said one of Poland's top armed forces generals Jaroslaw Mika has tested positive for coronavirus after returning from a military conference in Germany.  

US President Donald Trump, joined by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, right, speaks to reporters after meeting with Republican senators, on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 10, 2020. (J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE / AP)

Trump sees no need to be tested

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he has not been tested for the coronavirus, saying he has no symptoms of the disease and was examined by the White House's physician.

"I don't think it's a big deal. I would do it. I don't feel that any reason...I feel extremely good. I feel very good," Trump told reporters at the US Capitol following his meeting with Senate Republicans on the coronavirus response.

I don't think it's a big deal. I would do it. I don't feel that any reason...I feel extremely good. I feel very good.

Donald Trump, US president

Trump said the coronavirus outbreak would "go away" and urged Americans to remain calm as cases jumped.

About three quarters of US states now have confirmed COVID-19 with over 1,000 Americans infected, Washington state's governor warned of tens of thousands more cases without "real action" and New York's governor deployed National Guard troops as a containment measure in a hard-hit New York City suburb.

As US coronavirus cases rose steadily, the White House and Congress negotiated measures on Tuesday to bolster the US economy and Americans' paychecks against the outbreak's impact, although there was no immediate sign of a deal.

Also on Tuesday, the Pentagon acknowledged that the US military's official tally of servicemembers and related personnel who have been infected by the coronavirus likely undercounts the actual total, as a second servicemember in the United States tested positive for the virus.

UN closes NY headquarters to public, WTO suspends meetings

The United Nations said it would be closing its headquarters in New York to the public until further notice.

Separately, the World Trade Organization (WTO) said that it was suspending all meetings until March 20 after a staff member was confirmed to have coronavirus. 

The EU will suspend a rule requiring airlines to run most of their scheduled services or else forfeit landing slots, to give carriers some breathing space as the coronavirus crisis deepens, the EU chief said

EU suspends aviation slots rule as coronavirus hammers airlines

The European Union (EU) will suspend a rule requiring airlines to run most of their scheduled services or else forfeit landing slots, to give carriers some breathing space as the coronavirus crisis deepens, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday.

The EU chief did not say how long the suspension of the rule would last.

Von der Leyen also said the European Commission will set up an EU fund with a firepower of 25 billion euros (US$28 billion) from existing resources to tackle the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus.

READ MORE: EU grants govts fiscal leeway to fight coronavirus impact

Panama reports 1st coronavirus death

Panama's health ministry said on Tuesday that it has confirmed the country's first death from the coronavirus, adding that there are seven new cases of individuals testing positive for the virus in the Central American nation.

Jamaica, Bolivia report first confirmed cases

Jamaica’s Ministry of Health and Wellness confirmed on Tuesday the island nation’s first imported case of the coronavirus, in its capital city of Kingston.

Separately, Bolivia has confirmed its first two cases of coronavirus, Health Minister Anibal Cruz said in a public address on Tuesday.

Italian municipality police stand by the empty Spanish Steps, in Rome, March 10, 2020. (ANDREW MEDICHINI / AP)

French group Biomerieux launches three coronavirus tests

French healthcare company Biomerieux announced on Wednesday the launch of three tests to help fight the novel coronavirus.

BioMerieux, which provides diagnostic solutions to identify the source of disease, said it had finalized development of a SARS-COV-2 R-GENE test that is expected to get a European 'CE' mark.

This product will also be submitted to US regulator the Food and Drug Administration for possible authorization, it added.

New York to close schools

Schools, houses of worship and large gathering venues in part of the New York City suburb of New Rochelle will shut down for two weeks in an effort to contain the coronavirus outbreak at its local epicenter, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Barclays PLC told employees on Tuesday that a member of the trading staff in its Manhattan office has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a memo viewed by Reuters.

Coachella music festival postponed until Oct

The Coachella music festival in the Southern California desert has been postponed for six months until October because of concerns over the coronavirus, organizer Goldenvoice said on Tuesday.

Coachella, one of the biggest music festivals in the world, has been postponed for six months due to concerns over the coronavirus

The festival, one of the biggest in the world, brings half a million fans to an open-air site in Indio, east of Los Angeles, over two weekends and was due to take place on April 10-12 and April 17-19.

Spain steps up anti-coronavirus plan to 'avoid Italian scenario'

Spain shut down schools in several regions, suspended flights from Italy and advised against all non-essential travel on Tuesday in the hope of stemming a rising tide of coronavirus cases.

On Wednesday, the leader of the Spanish region of Catalonia, Quim Torra, said that all events involving more than 1,000 people are to be suspended and all sports events will be held without audience.

Spain, the euro zone's fourth-largest economy, has so far reported 36 deaths and 1,639 coronavirus cases. A total of 124 infections had been reported in Catalonia as of Tuesday afternoon.

The lower house of parliament decided to close down for at least a week after far-right lawmaker Javier Ortega Smith tested positive for the virus.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Tuesday that the country will guarantee the supply of medicines and open credit lines to small businesses.

The government is expected to unveil a package of measures at a cabinet meeting on Thursday.

Meanwhile, guests waved and cheered as they finally left a hotel in Tenerife, in the sunny Canary Islands, after having been under lockdown for two weeks after several cases of coronavirus were detected there.

Some of the last guests leave the locked down H10 Costa Adeje Palace hotel after getting the all clear, in La Caleta on the Canary island of Tenerife, Spain, March 10, 2020. (ANDRES GUTIERREZ / AP)

Bosnia bars entry to travellers from coronavirus-hit countries

Bosnia on Tuesday barred entry to travellers from countries most affected by the coronavirus outbreak, while its Serb region shut all schools and universities and banned public events from March 11 to March 30 to help stem the spread of the infection.

The measures were taken after three new cases of coronavirus were diagnosed on Tuesday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to seven.

Austria says will deny entry to arrivals from Italy

Austrian rail operator OBB said on Wednesday that it will suspend all passenger train connections to and from Italy until further notice due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The announcement comes a day after Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said that the country was introducing border checks and would deny entry to people arriving from Italy.

Sweden's Public Health Agency on Tuesday raised the country's risk level of COVID-19 spread to "very high", as 90 new confirmed cases were reported in the country

Portugal suspends Italy flights due to coronavirus

Portugal on Tuesday suspended all passenger flights to and from Italy for 14 days starting on Wednesday as a preventative measure to stem the spread of coronavirus.

Portugal has reported 41 cases so far.

KLM cancels all flights to Milan, Venice and Naples

KLM will suspend all its flights to Milan, Venice and Naples until April 3 due to the coronavirus outbreak in Italy, the Dutch airline said on Wednesday. Flights to other destinations in Italy will continue.

Sweden raises COVID-19 spread risk to 'very high'

Sweden's Public Health Agency on Tuesday raised the country's risk level of COVID-19 spread to "very high", the highest level of the risk.

On Tuesday, 90 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Sweden, bringing the total number of the cases to 350. Among the confirmed, 207 are in the Stockholm region.

READ MORE: WHO: COVID-19 pandemic threat very real, but controllable

Moldova closes schools, universities 

Moldova closed all its kindergartens, schools, colleges and universities for two weeks from Wednesday in a bid to stop the spread of the coronavirus, state health officials said.

A day earlier, it banned all foreigners from flying in from areas affected by the virus.

The country has reported three cases of coronavirus so far, but no deaths.

Racked by protests, Algeria bars political gatherings over virus

Algeria's government has cancelled political gatherings because of the coronavirus, it said on Tuesday, though it was not immediately clear if this would entail a ban on the mass protests that have convulsed the state for more than a year.

Health Minister Abderrahmane Benbouzid said in comments broadcast on state television that the government was acting to slow the spread of the disease, with 20 confirmed cases in the country.

Minister says 'essential' to ensure COVID-19 doesn't spread in DRC

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), Health Minister Eteni Longondo said that in light of the country recording its infection on Tuesday, Kinshasa was closely monitoring people who come from countries battling the epidemic. "The essential thing that the government can do now is to ensure that the disease does not spread," the minister said. 

COVID-19 cases continue to rise in LatAm

COVID-19 cases continue to climb up in Latin America, with the region's biggest country, Brazil, reporting Tuesday that its number of confirmed cases rose from 25 to 34.

In the first measure of its kind, a judge in Brazil's capital city of Brasilia ordered the husband of a confirmed coronavirus patient to undergo testing for the disease after he refused.

In Chile, the Health Ministry said four new patients were identified in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 17 in the country.

Costa Rica said its number of cases has reached 13 after four more cases were detected, including two kids. 

In Peru, officials confirmed two new cases, raising the total to 11 in the country. Health Minister Elizabeth Hinostroza said the new patients are two brothers from the central Huanuco region who recently returned from a trip to Europe.

Paraguay's Health Ministry reported its second confirmed case of the coronavirus in an elderly patient who recently arrived from Argentina.

Meanwhile, the Argentine government announced it was earmarking 1.7 billion pesos (US$27 million) to better combat the coronavirus, which has so far infected 17 people and led to one death in the country.

The confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in France have increased by 372 in a day to 1,784, Director-General of Health Jerome Salomon said Tuesday

COVID-19 situation in other parts of the world

The confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in France have increased by 372 in a day to 1,784, Director-General of Health Jerome Salomon said on Tuesday evening, adding that 33 people have died of the virus.

Canada is setting up a C$1 billion (US$728 million) fund to help its provinces combat a worsening coronavirus outbreak and is prepared to spend more money if necessary, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday.

The Canadian province of British Columbia confirmed seven new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, taking the total to 39 in the province.

In Romania, the number of COVID-19 cases surged by 12 on Tuesday, bringing the total to 29.

In neighboring Bulgaria, 6 cases have so far been reported after the detection of two new ones on Tuesday evening.  

In the Netherlands, the Dutch National Institute for Public Health (RIVM) said 4 percent of employees at several regional hospitals in Noord-Brabant province had tested positive for the virus.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the Netherlands had risen by 61 to 382, health officials said. The figure does not include all newly registered infections at half a dozen hospitals in Noord-Brabant, an RIVM spokesman told Reuters.

Meanwhile, Cyprus dramatically enhanced its measures aimed at preventing the spread of the COVID-19 after the first three confirmed cases were announced, according to a government statement.

The statement, issued after a lengthy meeting of the Council of Ministers under President Nicos Anastasiades, listed several measures, including the closure of public and private schools in the district of Nicosia and football games being held behind closed doors.

In Greece, Health Minister Vassilis Kikilias announced on Tuesday that a ll schools and universities across Greece will be closed for 14 days to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. The country has reported a total of 89 confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far.

Tunisia said on Tuesday that 268 passengers who returned from Italy by ship were placed in quarantine. Earlier, the Tunisian Health Ministry reported the country's sixth confirmed case.