Nations debate easing virus restrictions as economies falter

BEIJING (AP) — Governments around the world are wrestling with when and how to lift economically painful virus-control measures as unemployment rises and rent payments come due.

Many places have mandated strict restrictions on movement to try to stop the spread of a new coronavirus that has infected more than 2.2 million people and for which there is no vaccine.

The debate in the U.S. has taken on political tones. Republican President Donald Trump urged supporters to “LIBERATE” three states led by Democratic governors, tweeting the kind of rhetoric some have used to demand an end to stay-at-home orders that have thrown millions out of work.

Most governments remain cautious, even as the economic toll rises. Public health experts warn that easing shutdowns must be accompanied by wider testing and tracing of infected people to keep the virus from coming back.

South Korea's Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said Saturday that new guidelines could be issued soon that officials have said would allow people to engage in “certain levels of economic and social activity.”

America's largest state, California, lost nearly 100,000 jobs in March. “We are now in a pandemic-induced recession,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said. Texas and Florida, which both have Republican governors, took first steps toward easing restrictions.

Top leaders of China's ruling Communist Party called for deficit spending and a more flexible monetary policy after the economy shrunk 6.8 percent in the first three months of the year.

The outbreak has killed more than 150,000 people worldwide, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally based on figures supplied by government health authorities around the globe. The number all but certainly underestimates the actual toll.

Authorities said that almost...