In this Sept 11, 2019 photo, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau arrive at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, Ontario. (JUSTIN TANG / THE CANADIAN PRESS VIA AP)

LIBREVILLE / ACCRA /  KINSHASA/ OTTAWA / WASHINGTON / BRASILIA / BRUSSELS / LISBON / UNITED NATIONS / LONDON / AMSTERDAM / MADRID / COPENHAGEN / JOHANNESBURG / OSLO / LOS ANGELES / NEW YORK / BERLIN / NAIROBI / ZURICH / SOFIA / STOCKHOLM / KIEV / ADDIS ABABA / ROME / ATHENS - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie, are in self-isolation after she tested positive for coronavirus, while schools are being shut down in Ontario to limit the spread of the outbreak.

Trudeau, 48, is exhibiting no symptoms. 

Canada reported 145 confirmed cases, a three-fold gain from a week ago. There has been one death. Ontario, the most populous province, reported 17 new cases overnight, a 40 percent jump. 

With the Canadian dollar at a four-year low against its US counterpart and stocks plunging, the Bank of Canada announced measures to inject liquidity into the market.

This image posted from Fábio Wajngarten’s Instagram account shows, from left, Álvaro Garnero, US Vice-President Mike Pence, US President Donald Trump and Wajngarten, the communications director for Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro, posing for a photo at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. (PHOTO / INSTAGRAM VIA AP)

Trump: Virus testing to soon happen on 'very large scale'

US President Donald Trump said testing for cases will “soon happen on a very large scale basis,” following some changes, according to a Twitter post on Friday.

“All red tape has been cut, ready to go,” Trump added.

Trump on Thursday said he was not concerned about the possibility of being exposed to the coronavirus after dining last week with a Brazilian government official who has since tested positive for the disease.

Brazilian officials on Thursday confirmed that Brazil's communications secretary, Fabio Wajngarten, has the coronavirus and is now under quarantine at home.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who had been at the dinner with Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, has been tested for coronavirus and is awaiting the result, his son Eduardo wrote on Twitter.

White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence had "almost no interactions" with the Brazilian official and that they "do not require being tested at this time."

Wajngarten had been on an official visit to the United States with Bolsonaro and posted a photo on Instagram of the meeting at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club last Saturday, showing him standing next to Trump while wearing a "Make Brazil Great Again" cap. Pence was next to Trump.

Two Republican US senators who attended the visit by the Brazilian delegation said they would quarantine themselves.

Two policemen stand in front of the UN headquarters building in downtown Manhattan, in New York City, on Sept 22, 2019. (JOHANNES EISELE / AFP)

Diplomat from Philippines first known virus case at UN in New York

A female diplomat from the Philippines mission to the United Nations tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday, according to a note sent to UN missions, making the woman the first known case at the world body’s New York headquarters.

“As of today, the Philippine Mission is in lockdown, and all personnel are instructed to self-quarantine and to seek medical attention should they develop the symptoms. We are assuming that all of us have been infected,” wrote Philippines acting UN Ambassador Kira Azucena in a message seen by Reuters.

The Philippines Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin posted on Twitter that the diplomat was young, spritely and "doing well," adding that she had recently returned from Florida.

The sick diplomat represented the Philippines in the UN General Assembly’s legal affairs committees. Azucena said the diplomat was last at UN headquarters on Monday for about half an hour when she was asymptomatic.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the Filipino diplomat met with two other diplomats and visited only one UN meeting room, which had been cleaned three times since Monday. He said the UN medical services was contacting those diplomats.

Several UN meetings planned for Friday had been canceled in the wake of the diagnosis, diplomats said.

People walk past boards reading recommendations about Covid-19 at the business district of La Defense outside Paris, March 12, 2020. (CHRISTOPHE ENA / AP)

Bulgaria declares state of emergency

The Bulgarian parliament voted unanimously on Friday to declare a state of emergency until April 13 to contain the spread of coronavirus after the number of confirmed cases in the country rose to 23.

The state of emergency will allow for travel bans to and from countries with large coronavirus outbreaks, the closing of schools and universities, and permit police to intervene when imposed isolation of infected people is not observed.

The government also plans a revision of the 2020 state budget to allocate more funds to support the healthcare system, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov told deputies.

Ukraine has first coronavirus deat

Ukraine has recorded its first coronavirus death and foreign nationals will be barred from entering the country for two weeks to contain the spread of the illness, officials said at a televised briefing on Friday.

A 71-year-old woman in the Zhytomyr region died, having recently returned from Poland. Ukraine has two other confirmed cases of the virus.

Romania interim PM to enter quarantine after coronavirus contact

Romanian interim prime minister and Liberal Party leader Ludovic Orban will quarantine himself after coming into contact with one of his party’s senators who was later confirmed to have the coronavirus, he said on Friday.

Orban, his cabinet and Liberal Party leaders will enter self-quarantine and testing was underway, he said.

Portugal announces US$2.5-b package to help firms

Portugal moved to help businesses weather the coronavirus epidemic on Friday with a 2.3 billion euros (US$2.57 billion) package, including delaying some tax payments and granting soft loans.

The measures also include the suspension of social security payments and extraordinary support to companies for maintaining jobs contracts during a crisis situation, equal to two-thirds of salaries and to be paid largely by the state.

Workers who have to stay at home to care for school children of up to 12 years of age will receive 66 percent of their base salaries, the government said.

Swedish central bank draws up US$51-b loan package for firms

Sweden’s central bank said on Friday it would lend up to 500 billion Swedish crowns (US$51 billion) to Swedish companies via banks, moving to shore up credit flows as the coronavirus epidemic wreaks havoc on global financial markets.

France sees virus fallout costing billions

France will help all companies in which the French state has a stake to weather the coronavirus crisis, its finance minister said on Friday, putting the growing cost of measures to soften the economic fallout at "dozens of billions".

Describing Trump's decision to close US borders to EU citizens as an "aberration", Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said the move had triggered a historic sell-off on Thursday that saw shares in many of France's top companies collapse.

"At the end of the day, it will cost dozens of billions of euros, that how much we can expect," Le Maire said, giving the clearest picture yet how much the crisis would cost the government finances.

US approves coronavirus test in race to boost screening capacity

The US Food and Drug Administration has issued emergency authorization for a coronavirus test made by Swiss diagnostics maker Roche.

The tests provide results in 3.5 hours and can produce up to 4,128 results in 24 hours, Roche said on Friday.

The FDA’s Emergency Use Authorization allows the tests to be deployed in markets including the United States, as well as others accepting the CE mark signifying they conform to European directives.

European nations order school closures

Several European countries, including Portugal, Ireland, Belgium, France, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta and Estonia, have ordered on Thursday school closures to contain the coronavirus epidemic.

Calling the coronavirus pandemic "the most serious sanitary crisis that France has experienced in a century," French President Emmanuel Macron announced that from March 16 and until further notice, all nurseries, schools, colleges, high schools and universities in the country will be closed. He said, however, that municipal elections scheduled for this weekend should go ahead.

Portugal's government ordered on Thursday to shut down all schools nationwide from next week to contain the coronavirus epidemic, which Prime Minister Antonio Costa labelled a threat to survival in a televised address to the nation. Portugal has so far reported 78 confirmed cases of the coronavirus

Portugal, Ireland, Belgium, France, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania have and Malta ordered school closures as part of the measures taken to contain the coronavirus epidemic

Belgium's government on Thursday ordered schools, cafes and restaurants to close and tighter business hours for shops due to the coronavirus. The measures take effect from Friday and run until April 3, although schools are set to be shut for five weeks, including the Easter holidays, Belgium's caretaker prime minister Sophie Wilmes said.

Ireland will shut schools, universities and childcare facilities until March 29 and restrict mass gathering to slow the spread of the coronavirus, acting Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Thursday, as the number of confirmed cases rose to 70 from 43. 

ALSO READ: WHO declares virus outbreak a pandemic, seeks urgent action

In Slovakia, Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini said that all three international airports in the country will be closed, and border controls will be introduced. Schools will also be closed from Friday for at least 14 days.

The Latvian government also announced Thursday to introduce a national emergency till April 14. From Friday, all schools and universities in the country will be closed and public events gathering involving more than 200 people will be banned.

In neighboring Lithuania, the Vilnius City Municipality decided to shut down all schools and public entertainment places till April 17.

Estonia, with 27 cases of coronavirus so far, has decided to close schools and ban public gatherings until May 1 to limit the spread of the coronavirus, the government said in a statement late Thursday.

German capital Berlin plans to gradually close its schools and kindergartens next week when public transport systems will be reduced to a necessary minimum, broadcaster n-tv said reported on its website on Friday.

The German state of Bavaria will close all schools, kindergartens and nurseries from Monday until the start of the Easter break on April 6 due to the epidemic, dpa news agency reported, citing state government sources.

In addition to the wealthy southern state, the tiny western state of Saarland also said on Friday that it would close its schools. Three other states, including North Rhine Westphalia, Germany's largest, are due to decide on school closures on Friday.

EU's March summit to go ahead, staff sent home

The European Commission has decided to require most of its staff to work from home from Monday March 16 due to the coronavirus, the president of the EU executive told employees in a video recording on Thursday.

A summit of European Union leaders will go ahead as planned at the end of March but most European Commission staff will be required to work from home from Monday due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Seeking to stop the virus spreading but still make policy for its 450 million citizens, the EU will rely mainly on video conferences and home-working, although the March 26-27 summit is seen as "essential", the bloc said on Thursday.

READ MORE: EU disapproves of US travel ban as ECB ramps up stimulus

COVID-19 situation in Africa

Kenya has banned all major public events after confirming its first case of the coronavirus, in a woman who had returned to Kenya from the United States, the health minister said on Friday.

On Thursday, Gabon confirmed its first case of COVID-19, while Ghana confirmed its first two cases.

In Algeria, the Health Ministry on Thursday announced the country's second death from COVID-19.

DRC announced its second case of COVID-19 on Thursday, just two days after it reported its first case

Congolese Health Minister Eteni Longondo announced on Thursday the confirmation of a second case of COVID-19 in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), two days after DRC announced its first case.

Also on Thursday, Cote d'Ivoire's Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene announced the second confirmed case of COVID-19 in the country.

In Sengal, the Ministry of Health and Social Action confirmed Thursday the country's first cluster infection and first local transmission, with 5 Senegalese nationals tested positive for COVID-19. So far, the country has reported 10 cases of COVID-19.

Egypt reported on Thursday 13 new coronavirus cases, which included one person who died, the health ministry said.

South Africa's health ministry on Thursday retracted a comment that the country had seen the first case of local transmission of the coronavirus, saying that an error had been made by the laboratory that tested the patient. The country's new total of 16 confirmed cases of coronavirus is still the most in sub-Saharan Africa.

Tunisia's health ministry confirmed on Thursday six new coronavirus cases in the country, bringing the total number of infection cases to thirteen.

Botswana and Angola on Thursday rolled out policies to suspend overseas trips by officials to avoid spread of the COVID-19 into their countries.

Sudan stopped visa issuances and flight services to eight countries, including neighbor Egypt and Italy, over fears of the coronavirus outbreak, according to a government statement said on Thursday. It will also halt bus trips to Egypt, according to the statement.

Norway, Poland report first fatalities

Norway on Thursday recorded its first death from the coronavirus, Prime Minister Erna Solberg told broadcaster NRK.

Since Norway's first case of the virus was confirmed on Feb 26, the total number of infected people had risen to 621 as of Wednesday.

In Poland, a 57-year-old woman died of COVID-19 in a hospital in Poznan in western Poland, a city official announced on Thursday. 

Polish authorities reported 16 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the total number to 51. 

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson holds a news conference to give the government's response to the COVID-19 outbreak. At Downing Street in London, March 12, 2020. (SIMON DAWSON / POOL VIA AP)

Johnson warns Britons: More loved ones are going to die from coronavirus

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned on Thursday that many more families would see their loved ones die from coronavirus, as the government's chief scientific adviser said Britain likely has as many as 10,000 people infected.

At a meeting of the government's emergency committee on Thursday, Johnson moved Britain's response to the outbreak to the so-called "delay phase", aimed at putting off the peak until the summer months, ending a phase of outright containment.

"I must level with you, level with the British public - more families, many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time," Johnson said at a news conference.

The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus across the United Kingdom rose 29 percent to 590 over the past 24 hours. Ten people with coronavirus have died in the UK.

I must level with you, level with the British public - more families, many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time.

Boris Johnson, British prime minister

Britain and the EU have agreed to cancel face-to-face trade negotiations planned for next week in London due to the coronavirus outbreak, the UK government said.

The Electoral Commission watchdog said on Thursday that local elections in Britain that were due to take place in May should be postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak.

ALSO READ: UK unveils US$39b stimulus, Pope holds virtual audience

Germany reports 2 more deaths from COVID-19

Germany reported two more deaths from the novel coronavirus, bringing the death toll to five, according to the disease control agency, Robert Koch Institute, on Thursday.

The country's total confirmed cases stood at 2,369, with 802 new cases detected on Thursday, the agency's statistics show.

LatAm countries ramp up school closures, suspend public events

Several Latin American countries stepped up measures on Thursday to slow the spread of the coronavirus, halting flights to and from Europe, banning public gatherings and closing schools.

Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Costa Rica, Paraguay and Honduras took tougher steps a day after the World Health Organization described the outbreak as a  pandemic and the United States restricted some travel from Europe.

Honduras, with two coronavirus cases, said it would close schools and cancel public events for two weeks, as well as restrict entry of people coming from countries including Europe, Iran and South Korea.

Argentina, with 31 cases and one fatality, said it would stop issuing visas to travelers and suspend flights from countries hardest-hit by the virus, including the United States, Japan, South Korea and European countries.

In Bolivia, where there had been three coronavirus cases, interim President Jeanine Anez said officials would suspend flights to and from Europe, close schools until the end of the month and ban gatherings of more than 1,000 people.

In Peru, with 22 cases, President Martin Vizcarra said gatherings of more than 300 people would be banned and extended the suspension of school to universities and colleges. The Andean nation said later in the day it would suspend flights from Europe and Asia.

Costa Rica said it would close "at-risk" schools for two weeks and suspend university classes after confirming 23 cases.

In Paraguay, which has confirmed six cases of the virus, the government said it would cancel direct flights to and from Europe beginning Friday through March 26. 

Colombian President Ivan Duque has declared a nationwide health emergency, banning any activities of more than 500 people.

In Chile, which has reported 33 cases, the international music festival Lollapalooza slated for March 27-29 has been suspended and will be rescheduled.

The Mexican government has postponed its annual international tourist fair, Tianguis Turistico, which was originally scheduled for March 22-25, until September.

A woman rides along an almost deserted Piazza Navona in Rome, Thursday, March 12, 202. (ROBERTO MONALDO / LAPRESSE VIA AP)

Italy toll jump 23% to 1,016

The death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus in Italy has jumped in the last 24 hours by 189 to 1,016, a rise of 23 percent, the Civil Protection Agency said on Thursday.

The total number of cases in Italy, the European country hardest hit by the virus, rose to 15,113 from a previous 12,462, an increase of 21.7 percent. That marked the biggest daily rise in absolute terms since the contagion first came to light on Feb 21.

The agency said that, of those originally infected, 1,258 had fully recovered compared to 1,045 the day before. Some 1,153 people were in intensive care against a previous 1,028.

Netherlands closes museums as infections rise 22%

Two of the premier tourist attractions in the Netherlands, the Rijmsmuseum national gallery and Van Gogh museum, closed their doors to the public on Thursday as a government ban on gatherings of more than 100 people was imposed in response to the coronavirus epidemic.

The number of new coronavirus infections in the country rose 22 percent from a day earlier to 614. Five people have died.

Spain announces US$20-b package to tackle virus impact

Spain on Thursday announced a 18 billion euros (US$20.1 billion) package to tackle the economic impact of the coronavirus epidemic, which the country's hoteliers described as a "tsunami" threatening the survival of their businesses.

Funds will be directed to central and regional health authorities, prices of drugs and medical equipment will be capped, and the tourism sector will also receive financial support.

Spain's coronavirus death toll rose to 84 on Thursday, a rise of nearly 80 percent overnight. Spain has the second-highest coronavirus tally in Europe behind Italy.

Czechs shut borders to travellers from 15 countries

The Czech Republic will close its borders to travellers crossing from Germany and Austria and also ban the entry of foreigners coming from other risky countries to contain the coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Andrej Babis said on Thursday.

Czechs will also be barred from travelling to those countries, and to and from and other countries deemed risky, effective from Saturday (2300 GMT on Friday).

The Czech Republic reported 96 cases of the coronavirus on Thursday. There have been no known deaths from the disease in the central European country.

Denmark takes steps to help businesses

In a two-pronged move, the government and the Danish central bank on Thursday eased monetary policy by releasing banks' emergency buffer and offering cheap loans to banks to give the lenders more leeway during the coronavirus crisis.

Large parts of the Nordic country was in lockdown on Thursday after emergency measures by the government to shut all schools and universities and send home all employees in the public sector with non-critical jobs to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

6 new COVID-19 cases in Russia

Six Russian citizens have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours, the country's consumer rights and human wellbeing watchdog Rospotrebnadzor said Thursday. So far, 34 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed within Russia. 

New York City declares state of emergency

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a state of emergency to fight the coronavirus outbreak on Thursday, allowing him to use new powers as the number of confirmed cases rose to 95 cases in the city.

Earlier in the day, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a ban on gatherings of more than 500 people in the state.

The United States has tallied over 1,663 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday with at least 40 deaths, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

Ethiopia confirms its first case

Ethiopia has confirmed its first case of the new coronavirus, the country’s public health institute told Reuters on Friday.

Takele Uma Banti, the mayor of the capital Addis Ababa, tweeted that a Japanese citizen was the person affected.

“We should avoid meetings and hand contacts,” the mayor wrote on Twitter.

Rome cardinal rolls back on decree closing churches

A Rome cardinal on Friday abruptly modified his decree closing churches in the Italian capital in order to contain coronavirus after Pope Francis criticized “drastic measures” by churchmen.

Cardinal Angelo De Donatis issued a new decree less than a day after his initial one, which was widely criticized by ordinary Catholics. Under the new decree, many of Rome’s churches will remain open.

A full moon rises above Greek Parthenon Temple, covered by scaffolding, at the Acropolis archaeological site in Athens on Feb 9, 2020 . (LOUISA GOULIAMAKI / AFP)

Greece shuts all museums and ruins

Greece will close all its museums and archaeological sites, including the entire Acropolis that looms over Athens, until the end of the month due to the impact of the coronavirus, its culture ministry said on Friday.

Concern over the disease has prompted travel restrictions across the globe and has already hurt tourism, an important part of the economy in Greece, which attracted more than 33 million visitors last year. The ruins atop the Acropolis in Athens are among the most visited tourist sites in the world.

Separately, the Hellenic Olympic Committee on Friday decided to suspend the remainder of the Olympic Torch relay through the country to avoid attracting crowds because of the coronavirus.

Malta imposes 14-day quarantine on all arrivals

Malta has imposed a mandatory 14-day quarantine period on all arrivals in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus, Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Friday.

“The ban applies to all arrivals, from whichever country,” Abela told a news conference.