A member of the international media wearing a face mask as a precautionary measure against COVID-19, works outside St Thomas' Hospital in central London on April 7, 2020. (PHOTO / AFP)

LONDON / ROME / BERLIN / MEXICO CITY / SANTIAGO — UK’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson left intensive care on Thursday evening as he continues to recover from COVID-19, but he remains under close observation in hospital, his office said on Thursday.

Johnson, 55, was admitted to St Thomas’ Hospital on Sunday evening with a persistent high temperature and cough, and was rushed to intensive care on Monday where he spent three nights receiving treatment.

“The prime minister has been moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery,” a spokesman from his office said in an emailed statement.

“He is in extremely good spirits.”

The UK death toll in hospitals from coronavirus now stands at 7,978, a rise of 881 on the day but a smaller increase than the 938 seen in Wednesday’s data.

With the economy facing potentially the worst hit since World War Two, the government said it had expanded its overdraft facility with the Bank of England.

The central bank has agreed temporarily to finance government borrowing in response to COVID-19 if funds cannot immediately be raised from debt markets, reviving a measure last widely used during the 2008 financial crisis.

The BoE said it was a short-term measure and both it and government said any borrowing from the Ways and Means facility - effectively the government’s overdraft with the Bank - would be repaid by the end of the year.

Speaking earlier before the start of a four-day Easter break, UK's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab signaled Britain needs to maintain stringent curbs on the movement of people imposed to stop the spread of the disease.

“We’re not done yet, we must keep going,” Raab said in a televised briefing in London on Thursday. “Deaths are still rising, and we still haven’t seen the peak of the virus. So it’s still too early to lift the measures that we’ve put in place. We must stick to the plan.”

US

A clinical trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug, for the treatment of adults hospitalized with COVID-19 has begun in the United States, according to a release of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on Thursday.

The first participants have enrolled in the trial at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Tennessee.

The blinded, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial aims to enroll more than 500 adults who are currently hospitalized with COVID-19 or in an emergency department with anticipated hospitalization

US deaths due to coronavirus topped 16,400 on Thursday, according to a Reuters tally, although there are signs the outbreak might be nearing a peak.

US cases topped 459,000 on Thursday, up 27,000 from the prior day.

ALSO READ: Global COVID-19 cases surpass 1.5m, total deaths top 87,000

France

French hospitals registered a one-day loss of 424 COVID-19 patients, taking the total toll to 8,044, while some 4,166 elderly people living at nursing homes had died of the virus since the epidemic began, a health official said on Thursday.

In total, 12,210 patients succumbed to the COVID-19 compared with Wednesday's 10,869 which did not update human loss reported in retirement homes due to a technical problem, according to figures unveiled by Health General Director Jerome Salomon.

Some 86,334 people had tested positive for the virus, up by 4,334 in one day. Including infections reported in retirement homes, the figure rose to 117,749, Salomon told a daily conference on the epidemic.

According to a report released on Wednesday, French central bank BdF estimated that every two-week confinement would lead to a 1.5 percent loss in the gross domestic product (GDP).

The coronavirus pandemic has hit hard local businesses in tourism and manufacturing, with the country's economic activity tumbled by 32 percent since the lockdown began.

Spain

The death toll from COVID-19 in Spain has surpassed 15,000, the Spanish government said Thursday, adding it expects a decline in the country's epidemic.

The number of deaths from the virus had risen by 683 to 15,238, the Spanish Ministry for Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Services said. The daily count of deaths slightly dropped from 757 the previous day.

The total number of confirmed cases increased by 5,756 to 152,446, registering a 3.9-percent hike, down from the 4.4-percent rise 24 hours earlier.

Italy

The coronavirus pandemic has claimed 18,279 lives in locked-down Italy, bringing the total number of infections, fatalities and recoveries to 143,626 by Thursday, according to the latest data released by the country's Civil Protection Department.

Thursday saw 610 new fatalities and 1,979 new recoveries, raising the total recoveries to 28,470.

Addressing a televised press conference, Civil Protection Department Chief Angelo Borrelli said 1,615 new active infections were registered compared to Wednesday, bringing the nationwide total to 96,877 infections.

Of those infected, 28,399 are hospitalized, 86 fewer from the previous day; 3,605 are in intensive care, 88 fewer; and 64,873 are isolated at home, said Borrelli who also serves as extraordinary commissioner for the coronavirus emergency.

Germany

The further tightening of restrictions on daily life in Germany is not necessary at present, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday after a cabinet meeting dedicated to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

"The curve is flattening out," said Merkel at the Chancellery. The latest COVID-19 infection figures in Germany gave "reason for cautious hope."

Merkel stressed that it would be necessary to be "very, very careful" with relaxing the current restrictions. The ultimate goal is not to overburden the healthcare system in Germany, she said.

German citizens have repeatedly been urged to obey the contact restrictions over the upcoming Easter holidays. The situation is still "fragile" and "we are not allowed to be careless now," she said.

German Health Minister Jens Spahn also stressed that the Easter holidays in Germany would be a "fork in the road" in the fight against the coronavirus.

Spahn said that the "restrictions in everyday life," such as the closure of kindergartens and schools, were slowing down the spread of the disease. Of the almost 110,000 confirmed infections in Germany, more than 50,000 people have already recovered.

Portugal

Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa announced on Thursday the enforcement of a decree approved by the parliament a day earlier, granting partial pardon and easing the execution of sentences for convicts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The law will come into force on Friday. Portuguese Justice Minister Francisca Van Dunem said the decision could mean the release of between 1,700 to 2,000 prisoners.

According to the president, the decree addresses "ethical, humanitarian and public health reasons, as well as the recommendation coming from the United Nations and the Portuguese Catholic Church."

The law grants partial pardon of prison sentences for less serious crimes (convictions of up to two years), release for temporary leave and even anticipation of parole.

The law does not apply to anyone who has committed crimes such as homicide, rape, domestic violence or child abuse, nor crimes committed by politicians, militaries or magistrates during the course of their duties.

The minister said early this week in the parliament that one confirmed case of COVID-19 in prison would lead to 200 infections among the inmates.

As of Thursday, Portugal had reported 409 deaths and 13,956 coronavirus cases. A total of 815 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours, according to the Directorate-General of Health.  

Morocco

Morocco confirmed 99 more COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of infections to 1,374, which included 97 fatalities and 109 recoveries.

Algeria 

In Algeria, 30 death cases and 94 new infections were confirmed, raising the death toll to 235 and the total cases to 1,666.

Egypt reported 139 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number of confirmed cases to 1,699. The death toll surged to 118 after 15 fatalities were added on Thursday.

Egypt

Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities decided to shut down all museums and archeological sites "indefinitely" after they have been temporarily closed as part of the anti-coronavirus measures.

Libya

Libya's UN-backed government on Thursday announced three new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 24.

The National Center for Disease Control of the UN-backed government said in a statement that 106 suspected cases were tested in a hospital in eastern Libya, 103 of which were negative. 

Libya also announced the first death from COVID-19 on Thursday, an 85-year-old woman who was diagnosed with the disease after she passed away.

Mexico

Mexico has recorded its first two deaths of pregnant women from the coronavirus as the overall number of fatalities in the country reached 194, the health ministry said on Thursday.

One of the two women gave birth to a son before passing away, deputy health minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell told a news conference, noting that pregnant women are highly susceptible to infection caused by the virus. For a short time the baby boy had respiratory problems and is still delicate, he added.

Mexico’s cases of coronavirus rose to 3,441 from 3,181 a day earlier, when the tally stood at 174 deaths, the ministry said.

Guatemala

Guatemala on Thursday reported 31 new cases of coronavirus, with 126 in total. It has registered three deaths.

READ MORE: Health minister: Spain has reached 'peak of contagion'

Cuba

Cuba started on Thursday to distribute medical supplies donated by China to help stem the spread of COVID-19 nationwide.

Some 500 infrared thermometers, 2,000 sets of protective clothing, goggles and shoe covers, 2,000 N95 face masks and 10,000 surgical masks donated by the Chinese government arrived in Cuba on Sunday night.

Also on Sunday, 10,000 protective suits and 100,000 face masks, donated by China's Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co, reached the country.

Chinese Ambassador to Cuba Chen Xi said more donations from China are expected to arrive in the Caribbean nation.

The Chinese government and companies have been helping Cuba combat the epidemic since first confirmed cases were reported on the island in March.

Cuba has reported 515 cases and 15 deaths from coronavirus so far.

Chile

Chile's Ministry of Health on Thursday reported 5,972 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus and 57 deaths from the disease.

In the past 24 hours, 426 cases of infection and nine more deaths were registered.

All of the latest fatalities involved "very elderly" people aged 81 to 87 with pre-existing ailments, "fundamentally cancer, very advanced dementia and Alzheimer's," Health Minister Jaime Manalich said at a press conference.

Chile plans to issue a "discharge card" for COVID-19 patients who have recovered, which will exempt them from lockdown measures so they can return to normal life, said Manalich.

In the past day, 7,942 tests have been applied, resulting in a 5.3 percent rate of testing positive for the virus, he added.

Hungary

Hungary’s confirmed coronavirus cases have increased by 210 to 1,190, the single largest daily increase since the outbreak of the virus, government data showed on Friday.

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government prolonged a nationwide lockdown indefinitely on Thursday to slow the spread of the coronavirus, asking citizens to observe the order despite the Easter holiday.

The crisis has presented Orban with the toughest challenge to his decade-long rule. His response - to rule by decree indefinitely - has drawn criticism from the European Union.

Seventy-seven people have died so far, according to the government. Friday’s jump in cases includes 151 infections in an old people’s home in Budapest, of whom seven people had died, the government tally showed.

It said the number of infections could increase further still in the facility, which has a capacity of more than 500 people, as laboratory tests were still being conducted.

Botswana

Some lawmakers in Botswana have been moved to supervised quarantine after failing to observe an instruction to self-isolate as the country tries to curb the spread of the coronavirus, the government said on Friday.

All of the country’s parliamentarians, including President Mokgweetsi Masisi, had been asked to quarantine for 14 days and be tested for the coronavirus, after a health worker screening lawmakers for the virus herself tested positive.

Botswana has reported 13 coronavirus cases and one death.

Russia

Russia reported 1,786 more coronavirus cases on Friday, its largest daily rise so far, which took the national tally of confirmed infections to 11,917.

The number of coronavirus-related deaths rose by 18 to 94, the Russian coronavirus crisis response center said in a statement.