Health

Malaysia's health ministry reported 31 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking the cumulative total to 7,009 infections.

Russia's coronavirus case tally, the second highest in the world, passed 300,000 on Wednesday, but a representative from the World Health Organisation (WHO) said the situation was starting to stabilise.

Indonesia reported on Wednesday 693 new coronavirus infections, the Southeast Asian nation's biggest daily rise and taking the total number of cases to 19,189, according to the website of Indonesia’s COVID-19 task force.

Spain has made it compulsory for all citizens, including children over six, to wear masks in public spaces as one of Europe's strictest lockdowns gradually unwinds.

The Philippines' health ministry on Wednesday recorded 279 additional confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, the highest daily increase in nine days, and five additional deaths.

Russia reported 8,764 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, its lowest daily rise since May 2, taking the total number of documented infections to 308,705.

The discovery of new coronavirus cases in two students marred the reopening of South Korean schools on Wednesday, forcing 75 high schools to turn pupils away amid fears among some teachers that it was unsafe for classes to resume.

Singapore's health ministry said on Wednesday it had confirmed 570 new coronavirus cases, taking its tally of infections to 29,364.

Thailand expects to have a vaccine for the novel coronavirus ready next year, a senior official said on Wednesday, after finding positive trial results in mice.

China ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing said on Wednesday that it will start using artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to verify if drivers in its Latin American markets wear masks and disinfect cars to keep rides safe amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Spain's government on Wednesday made it compulsory for everyone older than six to wear masks in indoor public spaces, and outdoor ones when it is impossible to keep more than two metres apart.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved AstraZeneca Plc and Merck & Co Inc's Lynparza as a treatment for a form of prostate cancer, the companies said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

Tokyo confirmed five new coronavirus infections on Wednesday, the fourth straight day that the Japanese capital has seen fewer than 10 new cases, Asahi television said.

Shares of Fujifilm Holdings Corp fell on Wednesday after Kyodo news reported that so far there has been no clear evidence of efficacy for its drug Avigan in treating the novel coronavirus in some clinical trials.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 797 to 176,007, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Wednesday.

South Korean high schools opened on Wednesday for the first time this year, with mask-wearing seniors returning to class in the vanguard of a phased plan to reopen all schools under strict protocols to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday announced that it would stop selling its talc-based Johnson's Baby Powder in the United States and Canada, making the decision after a consumer products "portfolio reassessment related to COVID-19."

Mexico registered 2,713 new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, the health ministry said, its biggest daily increase yet in infections, bringing its overall tally to 54,346 cases.

Brazil's daily death toll from the new coronavirus jumped to a record 1,179 on Tuesday as President Jair Bolsonaro doubled down on chloroquine as a possible remedy and U.S. leader Donald Trump said he is considering a travel ban from Brazil.

China recorded five new coronavirus cases for May 19, down from six a day earlier, the National Health Commission reported on Wednesday.