Virus ravages Europe, US

• US reports half a million cases in a week   

• Cases in India nears 8m

• Australia cheers end of Melbourne lockdown

People in France and Germany were bracing yesterday for tough new curbs on their daily lives as Europe struggled to contain an alarming surge in coronavirus cases with winter looming.

The deepening gloom across the continent contrasted with the jubilation in Australia's second city of Melbourne where champagne corks popped to celebrate the end of a months-long lockdown.

The pandemic has unleashed devastation across the global economy since emerging in China at the end of last year. And in the absence of a vaccine or effective treatment, countries are being forced to impose widely unpopular Covid-19 restrictions that have sparked violent clashes in Italy.

In Europe, the main stock markets tumbled as investors fretted over the tighter measures expected to be imposed in the EU's leading economies.

Daily cases of Covid-19 in France have topped 50,000, while Germany is regularly reporting 10,000 new infections.

French President Emmanuel Macron is to address the nation yesterday evening to present new measures, with doctors warning that many hospitals are just days away from being overrun with patients. Reports say Macron might extend the hours of an overnight curfew already imposed on 46 million people, possibly with a full lockdown on weekends, or else order targeted lockdowns for the hardest-hit regions.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is also expected to push for tighter restrictions in crisis talks with regional leaders. The proposed measures include closing restaurants and bars and putting strict limits on private and public gatherings while keeping schools, daycares and shops open, according to the Bild daily.

And in Russia, an order making masks mandatory at public gatherings, on public transport and in elevators is set to come into force Wednesday.

The new restrictions are likely to test the resolve and patience of many. Anger has already boiled over in Italy, where thousands have protested in recent days against anti-coronavirus curbs.

But there was exhilaration and relief Down Under yesterday as Melbourne's five million people were able to return to shops and restaurants after months at home.

Across the world, the coronavirus has infected close to 44 million people, with well over 1.1 million deaths,

In the United States, President Donald Trump and his challenger Joe Biden are trading barbs over the handling of the pandemic as campaigning enters the final week ahead of the November 3 vote.

The US is reporting tens of thousands of new cases every day, with the overall caseload fast approaching nine million and a death toll over 225,000.

After the US, India is the most infected nation on the planet, with nearly eight million cases and tens of thousands of new infections daily.