4 May 2020

ISA Coronavirus Update (4th of May)

Daily Summary

The number of new cases of the coronavirus (Covid-19) continued to rise at a steady pace in recent days, rising to near 3.6 million around the world.  Meanwhile, the number of deaths associated with the pandemic approached 250,000.

The fastest increases in the number of new cases continued to be found in Russia, Turkey and Brazil, while Latin American countries such as Peru, Ecuador and Mexico also recorded more cases.

The number of new cases of the coronavirus continued to slowly trend downwards in many European countries in recent days as the first wave of the pandemic continued to wind down.  In Italy, the epicenter of the pandemic in Europe, the number of actual cases began to decline in recent days, the first larger country in Europe where this has happened.

United States President Donald Trump reiterated his claim that a vaccine for the coronavirus could be found before the end of this year, despite a general belief that it will take until next year to develop and distribute such a vaccine.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced that the state of emergency that is in place in his country will be extended for another month.  While the number of cases of the coronavirus in Japan remains relatively low, the Japanese government is worried that the country’s extremely old population could be at particular risk from the virus.

 

Key Developments

Russia’s Outbreak Worsens: During each of the past two days, the number of new cases of Covid-19 found in Russia surpassed 10,000.  This brought the total number of cases in that country to nearly 150,000.  This forced Moscow to extend lockdown measures across the country.

India Transitions to a Zonal Lockdown: The Indian government extended that country’s lockdown by an additional two weeks.  The extent of this lockdown is based on a system of zones linked to the number of cases of the coronavirus in different areas, with India’s largest cities remaining on lockdown.

 

Trend to Watch

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that it would have to delay polio vaccinations for 12 million children in Africa as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. These delays have resulted in new polio cases being reported in children in 15 countries.

The Coming Days

Australia and New Zealand are considering the creation of a “travel bubble” that will allow for travel between the two countries.  As the first wave of the pandemic eases, other countries may attempt to do the same between lower risk countries.