German New Virus Infections Rise Before Talks on Further Easing

(Bloomberg) --

The number of new coronavirus cases in Germany rose for the first time in six days ahead of talks between Chancellor Angela Merkel and regional leaders on a further easing of restrictions on public life.

There were 855 additional infections in the 24 hours through Wednesday morning, up from 488 the previous day and taking the total to 167,007, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The tracking tool reported no new fatalities from Tuesday, with the death toll staying at 6,993.

Pressure has been mounting on Merkel to speed up the country's exit from lockdown and reignite Europe's biggest economy. However, the chancellor has taken a cautious approach, highlighting the delicate balance between allowing businesses to reopen and preventing a second wave of infections.

Restrictions are likely to be lifted at different speeds depending on the region. Bavaria set the tone on Tuesday, announcing that larger shops and malls can reopen for business from May 11, with restaurants following on May 25 and hotels from May 30.

Germany is closely tracking what's known as the reproduction factor -- called R-naught by epidemiologists -- which reflects the number of additional coronavirus cases directly generated by one infected person. The goal is to keep that number low to avoid exponential growth and overloading the health-care system.

Germany's R0 dropped to 0.71 from 0.76 the previous day, according to the latest situation report from the country's public health authority published Tuesday.

At a caucus meeting on Tuesday, Merkel said further easing makes sense at this stage as there has been a lot of progress in fighting the virus in recent days, according to a participant in the meeting.

But she also warned that if there is a renewed outbreak with more than 50 acutely infected per 100,000 inhabitants in a given region, then local curbs will have to be reinstated to prevent the virus from spreading.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.