Health

The government of Ontario, Canada's most-populous province and industrial powerhouse, said on Monday it would not begin lifting restrictions to fight the coronavirus for weeks to come despite pressure from businesses to restart the economy.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Monday reported 957,875 cases of the coronavirus, and said the number of deaths had risen to 53,922.

France became the fourth country to report more than 23,000 coronavirus-linked fatalities on Monday, while the number of new confirmed cases rose at its sharpest pace in almost two weeks.

French researchers are preparing to launch a human trial to test their hypothesis that nicotine can help the body combat the COVID-19 infection.

Makers of household cleaners on Friday took the unusual step of urging people not to drink or inject their products, after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested researchers try using them to cure COVID-19 patients.

Twitter Inc said on Friday video clips of U.S. President Donald Trump suggesting that scientists investigate inserting light or disinfectant into coronavirus patients did not violate its COVID-19 misinformation policy.

U.S. President Donald Trump's musings on whether injecting disinfectants might treat COVID-19 horrified medical professionals on Friday and raised fresh concerns that his stream-of-consciousness briefings could push frightened people to poison themselves with untested treatments.

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he was being sarcastic when he raised the possibility of using disinfectant inside people's bodies to fight the coronavirus, seeking to walk back comments that alarmed medical professionals worldwide.

Bayer said the economic downturn and the need to preserve cash means it is taking a tougher stance in talks to settle claims over accusations that its glyphosate-based weedkillers cause cancer, even as its earnings rose.

Russia overtook China in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases on Monday, when its tally climbed above 87,000, as pressure rose on the government to consider easing lockdown restrictions for businesses to help shore up the rattled economy.

The number of daily fatalities from the novel coronavirus reported in Spain rose on Monday to 331, up from 288 the previous day, the health ministry said.

Indonesia's number of reported cases of the coronavirus has risen by 214 to 9,096, health ministry official Achmad Yurianto said on Monday.

Bayer said the economic downturn and the need to preserve cash means it is taking a tougher stance in talks to settle claims its glyphosate-based weedkillers cause cancer, even as its earnings rose.

Malaysia reported 40 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus on Monday, taking the cumulative total to 5,820 infections.

Nearly two million Australians rushed to download an app designed to help medical workers and state governments trace close contacts of COVID-19 patients, as Prime Minister Scott Morrison's approval rating soared on his pandemic response.

Thailand will extend a state of emergency over the coronavirus until the end of May, but will consider easing some restrictions on businesses and public activities as the number of new cases has eased, a government spokesman said.

Russia reported 6,198 new confirmed coronavirus cases on Monday versus 6,361 on the previous day, which took the national tally of infections to 87,147.

Researchers at a Hong Kong university say they have developed an antiviral coating which could provide 90 days of "significant" protection against bacteria and viruses such as the one causing COVID-19.

Healthcare and clinical diagnostics company Novacyt has signed a supply contract with the UK's Department of Health & Social Care (DHSC) for its product aimed at testing for the presence of the coronavirus, the company said on Monday.

Singapore has confirmed 799 more coronavirus infections, its health ministry said on Monday, taking the city-state's tally of cases to 14,423.