Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus
(Reuters) - Greece opened some beaches - although with strict social distancing rules - and German soccer's Bundesliga became the first major sports league to resume, but with empty stadiums. Many countries are starting gradual easing of restrictions as the world grapples with the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* More than 4.56 million people have been reported to have been infected globally and 306,221 have died, according to a Reuters tally, as of 0210 GMT on Saturday..
* For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread, open https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser.
* For a U.S.-focused tracker with state-by-state and county map, open https://tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T in an external browser.
EUROPE
* From social distancing substitutes using airport stairs, to disinfected balls and a potential television audience of one billion, the German soccer's Bundesliga enjoyed a chequered restart as the first major sports league to resume amid the pandemic.
* Greeks flocked to the seaside when more than 500 beaches reopened, as the country sought to walk the fine line between protecting people from COVID-19 while reviving the tourism sector that many depend on for their livelihoods.
* Italy's government approved a decree that will allow travel to and from abroad from June 3, a major development as it moves to unwind one of the world's most rigid lockdowns.
* Spain's government will seek to extend its coronavirus state of emergency for the last time until late June, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said, as the country's daily death toll reached a near eight-week low.
* Hungary will gradually lift restrictions in Budapest from Monday, two weeks after it ended the lockdown in the rest of the country, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
AMERICAS
* The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday narrowly approved a $3 trillion bill crafted by Democrats to provide more aid for battling the coronavirus and stimulating a faltering economy.
* U.S. President Donald Trump said his administration was considering numerous proposals about the World Health Organization, including one in which Washington would pay about 10% of its former level.
* Brazil lost its second health minister in a month on Friday after President Jair Bolsonaro demanded wider use of unproven anti-malarial drugs to fight the outbreak, adding to turmoil in one of the pandemic's worst global hotspots.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* As Wuhan, the Chinese city where the pandemic began, revs up a massive testing campaign, some residents crowding the test centres expressed concern that the very act of getting tested could expose them to the coronavirus.
* A truck crammed with migrant labourers trying to reach their distant homes amid a nationwide lockdown crashed in northern India, killing at least 23 and injuring 35.
* Thailand extended a ban on international passenger flights until the end of June, the country's aviation regulator said, as new cases in the country dwindle.
* Struggling to curb the coronavirus spread while the rest of Australia has begun relaxing a two-month lockdown, Victoria state reported 11 new cases, including some linked to known clusters at a meat factory and a McDonald's restaurant.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* The governments of Abu Dhabi and Dubai are discussing ways to prop up Dubai's economy by linking up assets in the two emirates, with Abu Dhabi's state fund Mubadala likely to play a key role in any deal, three sources familiar with the matter said.
* Zimbabwe will keep its coronavirus lockdown for the time being, though businesses will be allowed to open for longer and the restrictions will be reviewed every two weeks, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said.
* Prominent emerging market creditors have set up a working group to help heavily-indebted African countries with the economic impact of COVID-19, but have criticised recent G20 calls for blanket debt relief.
ECONOMIC FALLOUT
* German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz is working on an aid package worth 57 billion euros ($61.65 billion) to help municipalities cope with plunging tax revenues caused by the coronavirus crisis, a ministry document showed.
* One in 10 German retailers and 6% of wholesalers face possible insolvency from extended closures, a survey found, despite moves in recent days to unwind social distancing measures.
* Britain's lowest-earning workers have suffered the biggest jobs hit since the coronavirus crisis engulfed the country, a survey showed.
* J.C. Penney Co Inc filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday with plans to permanently close some stores and also explore a possible sale.
* The U.S. Federal Reserve warned Friday that the financial sector faces "significant" vulnerabilities due to the pandemic, as businesses and households grapple with fragile finances for the foreseeable future.
* The euro zone economy saw its deepest contraction on record in the first quarter, as expected by markets, as a result of lockdowns introduced in March.
(Compiled by Frances Kerry)
