Russia posts record daily new cases, UK economy could shrink 14% this year

Russia reported 11,231 additional cases of the coronavirus disease over the last 24 hours — a record high in daily new cases in the country, reported Reuters. Russia’s tally of cases now stands at 177,160 since the outbreak, said the report, which cited the country’s coronavirus task force. The death toll increased by 88 to 1,625, according to the report.

The Bank of England said the U.K. economy could contract by 14% in 2020, with a sharp downturn expected in the first half of the year. The central bank has cut interest rates twice since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, but held rates steady at 0.1% in its latest monetary policy meeting. The BOE also voted to continue its 200 billion British pound ($247.55 billion) asset-purchase program.

The U.K. has reported more than 202,000 coronavirus cases — one of the highest globally, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The country’s death toll of over 30,000 is the highest in Europe and second-largest globally, the data showed.

China’s trade surplus for the month of April was $45.34 billion — far better than $6.35 billion economists polled by Reuters had predicted. China received the top score in a survey that asked people to rate their country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. The study by Blackbox Research and Toluna surveyed around 12,500 people from 23 countries last month. The respondents were asked to rate their nations in four areas: political leadership in the country, corporate leadership, community and media. China topped the ranking with a score of 85 out of 100, followed by Vietnam at 77 and the United Arab Emirates at 59, the results showed.

Coronavirus live updates: Russia posts record daily new cases, UK economy could shrink 14% this year, CNBC, May 7