China says it has no new deaths from coronavirus. There are very tentative signs of slowing infection rates in several European hot spots. For some governments, that's tilting the conversation toward … what next.
It's a tricky – and perilous – balancing act. There's the need to limit economic damage and prevent long and deep recessions. But there's also the real risk that easing containment measures too quickly could see a fresh spike in cases.
Denmark and Austria were among the first in Europe to limit public life in response to Covid-19. Now both have announced steps to gradually reopen their economies, although some restrictions may stay in place for months.
The danger is that other countries aren't so careful. In Mexico and Brazil, leaders have objected to drastic lockdowns and repeatedly pushed people to get back to work quickly.
Caution is warranted. Just look to Asia. New restrictions in Hong Kong and Singapore show how vulnerable the world is to further waves of contagion. Nations will be watching how China's experiment goes in reopening Wuhan, where the virus first emerged.
In the U.K., where an initial lockdown runs out next week, there are signs of tension between those in the government who want to lift some measures and others who want to prolong them.
That's as Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the first leader to say he tested positive, is in a hospital intensive-care unit and receiving oxygen. The management of the crisis, and those difficult questions on timing, is now in the hands of his de facto deputy, Dominic Raab.
– Rosalind Mathieson
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