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Crisis in Brazil | Economic woes in Singapore

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A man looks at a display of stock prices from the Tokyo Stock Exchange on May 26 in Tokyo.
A man looks at a display of stock prices from the Tokyo Stock Exchange on May 26 in Tokyo. Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images

Asian stocks and US futures rose Tuesday, as a growing number of cities and countries around the world took steps towards reopening.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 (N225) climbed 2.6%, leading the way in the region.

On Monday, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lifted the state of emergency for the entire nation. Abe said he was also working to increase the government’s stimulus packages to more than 200 trillion yen ($1.9 trillion), or about 40% of the annual output of the world’s third-biggest economy.

Japan’s cabinet is expected to approve the new package on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index (HSI) advanced about 2%, adding to Monday’s gains.

Read more:

Asian stocks rise, boosted by 're-opening optimism'

A man in South Korea who refused to adhere to quarantine rules in one of the country’s hardest-hit areas was sentenced to four months in prison on Tuesday.

The Uijeongbu District Court in Gyeonggi Province sentenced the unnamed defendant for violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act.

Authorities said he refused to stay either at home or in a government-designated quarantine facility, visiting public places — including a sauna and a convenience store — despite multiple warnings not to do so.

US President Donald Trump.
US President Donald Trump. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Sometime in the next few days, the 100,000th American will succumb to Covid-19 in a pandemic that President Donald Trump once predicted would just “miraculously” disappear.

Yet despite, and perhaps because of, his earlier cavalier attitude, Trump spent the long holiday weekend bemoaning everything but the tragic roll call of death — while also finding time to claim he got “great reviews” for handling the crisis.

In his most politically significant maneuver, he heaped intense pressure on North Carolina’s Democratic governor to permit a normal, crowded Republican National Convention, despite fears such a mass gathering could seed virus hot spots. Trump warned he could pull the huge money-earner out of Charlotte, which was picked to play host in August.

The move came as the President intensified his push for a full reopening of the country and television footage showed packed beaches and boardwalks in some states as Memorial Day crowds fueled fears that social distancing may be breaking down.

On social media, he waged a weekend of Twitter wars against his critics, targeting a favorite foil, Barack Obama, after Trump’s return to the golf course — his 266th such trip in office — sparked calls for him to concentrate more fully on the pandemic.

And he indulged his preoccupations on his tax returns, Hillary Clinton, Fox News, slanders against MSNBC host Joe Scarborough, the Russia investigation, Joe Biden’s mental health, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, mail-in voting in November and highlighted dangerous and unproven Covid-19 therapies promoted on conservative media he has tested himself.

Read more:

As stark landmark looms, Trump pursues political obsessions

It’s nearing 3 p.m. in Singapore and 4 a.m. in Rio de Janeiro.  If you’re just joining us, here’s what you missed:

  • Crisis in Brazil: Brazil recorded 11,687 new coronavirus cases within 24 hours, the country’s health ministry said on Monday, taking the nationwide total to 374,898. Only the United States has recorded more.
  • An unusual holiday in the US: Photos and video of Memorial Day weekend celebrations across the US — usually considered the unofficial start of summer — showed plenty of people going to the beach and gathering on boardwalks, but not a lot of social distancing or masks. More than 19,000 new coronavirus cases were identified in the country on Monday.
  • Economic woes in Singapore: The city-state’s recession may be much deeper than expected this year as the coronavirus pandemic continues to batter the economy. GDP growth is now forecast to drop between 4% and 7% — down from an expected decline of 1% to 4%, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
Shutterstock
Shutterstock

LATAM Airlines Group, the largest air carrier in Latin America, has filed for bankruptcy in large part due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the company said in a statement on its website.

The company is planning to reorganize operations under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States. CEO Roberto Alvo said the company will focus “on transforming our group to adapt to a new and evolving way of flying, with the health and safety of our passengers and employees being paramount.”

In the meantime, reservations, employee pay, flight vouchers, and passenger and cargo operations will not be impacted, according to the statement. 

“Our group has shared our journey with the people of Latin America, thriving in times of growth and pulling together to overcome times of adversity,” the statement said. “LATAM will emerge from this process a more efficient, resilient, and ultimately strengthened airline group that is better placed to serve Latin America.”

This is the second major airline in the region to file for bankruptcy this month. Colombia-based Avianca filed for bankruptcy May 11, citing coronavirus-related financial problems. 

Photos and video of Memorial Day weekend celebrations across the US — which is usually considered the unofficial start of summer — showed plenty of people going to the beach and gathering on boardwalks, but not a lot of social distancing or masks.

From Florida to Indiana and across the country to California, Americans were out enjoying the weekend as states loosened coronavirus restrictions.

Read more about what happened across the country here. Images from the holiday weekend can be found here.

A pedestrian rests in a park in Singapore earlier this month.
A pedestrian rests in a park in Singapore earlier this month. Roslan Rahman/AFP/ Getty Images

Singapore’s recession may be much deeper than expected this year as the coronavirus pandemic continues to batter the wealthy city-state.

Officials there Tuesday slashed the country’s economic forecast for the third time this year. GDP growth is now set to drop between 4% and 7% — down from an expected decline of 1% to 4%, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

The darkening outlook marks a major departure from just a few months ago. Earlier this year, Singapore was seen as one of the few countries that had its coronavirus response under control.

But it has recently experienced an alarming second wave of infections, leading to heightened restrictions. The island nation now has 31,960 confirmed cases, up from just a few hundred in March, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Singapore was already headed for recession last year as its exports slumped due to the US-China trade war.

Now, “we think the economy is already in recession,” Sung Eun Jung, of Oxford Economics, wrote in a research note Tuesday.

To shore up the flagging economy, the government has deployed billions of dollars in stimulus measures.

A new package is also expected later on Tuesday, when Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat presents a relief plan for businesses in an address to parliament.

A medical worker guides visitors to take a Covid-19 test in the nightlife district of Itaewon in Seoul on May 12.
A medical worker guides visitors to take a Covid-19 test in the nightlife district of Itaewon in Seoul on May 12. Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images

There are now 247 cases of coronavirus in South Korea tied to an outbreak in Itaweon, a popular nightlife district in the capital of Seoul, health officials said.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said Tuesday that 83,000 tests have been conducted in connection with the outbreak. About 30% of the nearly 250 who were confirmed positive are asymptomatic, the KCDC added.

Many clubs in the district are popular with Seoul’s gay community, and the outbreak sparked an outpouring of hate speech toward the country’s already-embattled LGBTQ population.

A priest at the funeral of Covid-19 victims at El Angel cemetery, in Lima on May 21.
A priest at the funeral of Covid-19 victims at El Angel cemetery, in Lima on May 21. Ernesto Benavides/AFP/Getty Images

Peru was one of the first nations in the Americas to introduce strict preventative coronavirus measures, including stay-at-home orders, curfews and border closings.

How, then, did it become one of the hardest hit?

As of Monday, Peru had more than 123,900 confirmed coronavirus cases and 3,600 deaths — putting it second only to Brazil both in the number of cases and deaths in Latin America.

The two countries had handled the epidemic very differently: While Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro downplayed the dangers posed by the coronavirus, Peru’s President Martin Vizcarra declared a nationwide state of emergency on March 15 that included mandatory self-quarantine, and shuttered the country’s borders.

But the virus surged all the same.

About 85% of Peru’s ICU beds with ventilators are now occupied, according to government figures, and overcrowding at hospitals is feared.

“This situation is not just a health emergency, but a health catastrophe, defined as a situation where the pandemic has overtaken the response capacity of the health sector,” Dr. Alfredo Celis, of the Medical College of Peru, told CNN en Español.

Deep wealth inequality and poor aid distribution design are two reasons why. Read here to learn more.

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