Coronavirus live ticker: +++ 05:25 newspaper: showmen “is water up to the neck” +++

The corona crisis puts the around 5000 showmen in Germany in existential need. “Most of them had their last use at the Christmas markets. Since then they have had no income,” says Albert Ritter, President of the German Showmen’s Union and President of the European Showmen’s Union, the newspapers of the “Funke Mediengruppe”. “Many of the factories, which have often been family-run for generations, are up to their necks. They fear for their existence.” To save the companies in the crisis, Ritter demands: “We urgently need a deferral of all taxes and fast, unbureaucratic immediate payments and subsidies for the companies.” It is important that the state does not force the entrepreneurs to initially sell the necessary equipment – such as cars or tractors – in order to receive grants or basic security. “We don’t want to retire after the crisis, we want to continue,” says Ritter. “We showmen are the big antidepressant in Germany. We are the last campfire in Germany that all generations have fun with.”

+++ 05:17 Canada does not send athletes to the Olympic Games +++
Because of the global corona pandemic, Canada does not want to send athletes to any Tokyo Summer Olympics. This is announced by the National Olympic Committee of Canada (COC). The “difficult decision” was made with the approval of sports associations and the Canadian government. Participation in the 2020 Paralympic Games had also been canceled.

In addition, the COC is calling on the International Olympic Committee to postpone the games by one year. Nothing is more important than the health and protection of athletes and the global community, the message says. The games in Tokyo are scheduled to run from July 24th to August 9th, 2020.

+++ 05:05 South Korea reports the smallest daily increase in new infections +++
South Korea has seen the slightest daily increase in new coronavirus infections since the peak at the end of last month. 64 new cases were found on Sunday, the health authorities said. This brings the total to 8961. The number of deaths associated with the Sars CoV-2 pathogen climbs by seven to 111.

+++ 04:52 New York City: 10,000 corona infections feared +++
The number of coronavirus infections continues to rise sharply in New York City. “We are on the threshold of 10,000 cases,” said New York Mayor Bill de Blasio. He speaks of a shocking number in the “epicenter” of the corona pandemic in the United States and warns of a “new reality” that will last for weeks or months. Around a third of the Covid 19 cases recorded in the United States come from the largest city in the United States with just under nine million inhabitants.

+++ 04:33 Singapore Airlines leaves almost the entire fleet on the ground +++
Singapore Airlines has announced that it will keep almost its entire fleet on the ground. Capacity is reduced by 96 percent, the company said. The Singapore hub is closed to travelers and transit passengers. Airline shares drop more than eight percent in the morning, the broader market sinks more than seven percent.

+++ 04:16 Saudi Arabia imposed curfew +++
Saudi Arabia imposes a night-time curfew as a measure to curb the coronavirus. As reported by state media, this will apply for three weeks from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. starting this evening.

+++ 03:55 First official corona case in Syria +++
Syria reports the first official coronavirus case. Health Minister Nizar al-Yaziji tells the state media that “necessary measures” have been taken against the 20-year-old woman, who he says is being quarantined and medically examined for 14 days. In recent weeks, there have been unconfirmed reports of coronavirus cases in Syria, whose health system and infrastructure have been marked by nine years of civil war. The authorities have so far denied an outbreak and allegations of cover-up.

+++ 03:32 Arab Emirates isolate themselves +++
The United Arab Emirates are now largely sealing themselves off in the global fight against the corona virus. Health authorities order a series of protective measures to slow the spread of the virus as much as possible. Among other things, all shopping centers and restaurants in the UAE would be closed immediately, reports Al Arabiya. At the same time, all people were asked to stay within their own four walls if possible and to wear protective masks during urgent public stays.

+++ 03:21 Handwerk warns of negative consequences due to a ban on contact +++
President of the trade, Hans Peter Wollseifer, welcomes the strict contact restrictions agreed by the federal and state governments, but also warns of further negative consequences for companies. “The first thing that matters now is to slow down the spread of the corona virus,” says Wollseifer of the “Rheinische Post”. “The now agreed common contact restrictions seem necessary to guarantee that,” said the President of the Central Association of German Crafts (ZDH). “At the same time, the contact restrictions make the economic situation of the companies all the more difficult, even in medium-sized businesses,” continues Wollseifer. Guaranteed or low-interest loans alone were not enough. “It is therefore essential and urgent to take precautions to ensure livelihood, and with as little application bureaucracy as possible,” said Wollseifer. “Especially for small and medium-sized businesses, there must be non-repayable grants for running costs such as commercial rents and tax deferrals, in short: everything that brings liquidity and relieves the cost side.” He urges haste: All stabilization measures should be laid down by law this week. “For more and more companies, it is a matter of days with regard to their continued existence,” warned Wollseifer.

+++ 03:02 ECB vice-president expects temporary recession in Europe +++

Vice-President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Luis de Guindos anticipates a recession in Europe in the first half of the year as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. “The impact of the virus will be very severe and will plunge Europe into recession,” said de Guindos to Spanish TV broadcaster La Sexta. “I think the first half of the year will be very bad. This will pull the entire European economy into negative growth rates this year, but I think we will see positive growth rates for Europe in the second part of the year,” he adds stresses that the ECB will do as much as necessary to combat the harmful economic effects of the corona virus and reaffirms the importance of avoiding a European debt crisis.

+++ 02:49 government plans to lift attendance at general meetings +++
The Federal Ministry of Justice wants to soften the attendance at general meetings because of the ban on assembly during the corona crisis, according to the “Handelsblatt”. A corresponding bill is part of the measures that the federal government intends to adopt on Monday, the newspaper reports, citing government circles. This should create the possibility of a virtual AGM, at which shareholders do not have to be physically present to take resolutions.

+++ 02:32 More than 30,000 infected in the United States +++
According to US Vice President Mike Pence, the United States tested around 254,000 people for the virus, and more than 30,000 were found to be infected. President Donald Trump then said that it was absolutely necessary to abide by the “social distancing” rules. The United States will use all capacities to fight the “Chinese virus” in Trump’s words. The United States is also ready to help North Korea, Iran and other countries to contain the Corona virus. He spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping about the crisis and was “a little upset” about China. The reasons for Trump’s anger were initially unknown. Trump claims that Congress is about to make a decision to help the slump in the economy. Trump is also considering whether to release older, non-violent detainees to better protect them.

+++ 02:19 Japan is considering postponing the Olympic Games +++
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is considering postponing the Summer Olympics for the first time due to the corona crisis. In front of the parliament in Tokyo, he says that this must be expected.

+++ 02.13 China reports 39 new cases +++
In mainland China, no infection has been reported for the fifth day in a row, according to the authorities. However, the number of cases brought in from abroad continued to increase, as the National Health Commission announced on Monday. All of 39 new infections were caused by this. These are primarily Chinese returnees. The number of infections in China thus rises to 81,093, the number of deaths increases by nine to 3,270.

+++ 02:09 Head of Chancellery: delivery of protective equipment starts +++
Chancellor-in-chief Helge Braun is optimistic that the delivery of urgently needed medical protective equipment for hospitals and care facilities is starting. “We ordered enormous quantities and noticed that something was going to happen,” says Braun on ARD. One reason is that goods traffic flows again in the EU, he adds with regard to temporary traffic jams due to border closures.

+++ 01:59 First coronavirus death in Montenegro +++
The small state of Montenegro is complaining of its first death from the corona virus. A 65-year-old Montenegrin died on Sunday shortly after his arrival for treatment in the hospital, reports the state television RTCG. The health authorities in the capital Podgorica report that 22 people are currently infected with the virus in the small state on the Adriatic Sea, and another 5500 people are under observation.

+++ 01:45 Maracanã Stadium becomes the Corona Clinic +++
The legendary Maracanã stadium in Rio de Janeiro and other Brazilian soccer arenas are being turned into hospitals in the fight against the corona pandemic. Master Flamengo is making the Maracanã Stadium and other facilities available to the health authorities so that field hospitals can be set up there, as Club President Rodolfo Landim said.

A total of twelve of the 20 clubs in the first Brazilian football league have already provided their stadiums for the treatment of corona patients. These include Botafogo from Rio and Corinthians from São Paulo. Numerous football clubs from other Brazilian leagues have also left their stadiums to the health authorities.

+++ 01:31 Clinical tests of four agents against coronavirus in Europe begin +++
In Europe, clinical trials of four experimental methods for the treatment of Covid-19 are starting. The French state-run research institute Inserm said that the tests on around 3,200 test subjects would use remdesivir, lopinavir and ritonavir with or without the active substances interferon beta and hydroxychloroquine. According to this, tests are to be carried out on patients in France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain and Great Britain who are infected with the novel corona virus and are therefore being treated in a hospital.

+++ 01:05 Corona aid package initially failed in the US Senate +++
The gigantic US aid package planned to combat the corona crisis initially fails in the Senate. In a first vote on procedural questions, the opposition Democrats refused to give their consent: instead of the necessary 60, there were only 47 votes in favor and just as many votes against. The final vote on the $ 2 trillion aid package was supposed to take place on Monday.

+++ 00:47 Trump orders the dispatch of emergency hospitals to +++
US President Donald Trump orders the deployment of emergency hospitals to the New York, Washington and California states, which are particularly affected by the new coronavirus. The Fema civil protection agency and the armed forces would begin delivering the hospitals within the next 48 hours, Trump said. This should initially provide around 1,000 additional hospital beds in New York, 2000 in California and 1000 in Washington.