Coronavirus latest: Singapore reports 690 new cases; Covid-19 has killed more Americans than the Vietnam war; Brazil’s death toll passes China

• British Airways set to cut up to 12,000 jobs; Russia worried about effect on ‘nuclear cities’
• Brazil passes 5,000 deaths from Covid-19; pug becomes first known dog in US to test positive
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• The United States has recorded its one-millionth coronavirus case as countries including Spain took tentative steps back towards normal life by preparing to reopen some businesses.
  Excitement over partial easing of lockdowns has been tempered by fear of new outbreaks and growing evidence of the economic devastation wreaked by the Covid-19 pandemic.
  The US - where millions of jobs have gone - reached another grim milestone as it registered 58,351 deaths, a larger loss of life than recorded by the US military in the Vietnam war. Communist Vietnam, a neighbour of China, has recorded 270 cases and no deaths, Johns Hopkins said.
• And the overall US case load rose to 1,011,877 in a public health disaster that could threaten President Donald Trump’s re-election chances.

  But some countries have reported falling infection numbers, and governments have begun to chart their way out of the shutdowns.

  France said on Tuesday that shops, markets and some schools could reopen next month, with face masks required on public transport and work-from-home orders staying in place for several more weeks.
• In Russia, President Vladimir Putin warned that the peak of coronavirus infections still lay ahead, saying “the situation remains very difficult”. But he nonetheless said lockdown measures could be eased from next month.

  The new coronavirus has killed at least 216,000 people since it was first detected in China in December.

  At least 3,113,447 cases have been registered in 193 countries and territories, although the official tally is widely thought to lag far behind the actual figures.
• With the US seeing by far the highest number of deaths, Trump has increasingly sought to blame China for the mounting toll.

  China pushed back fiercely on Tuesday, accusing US politicians of “barefaced lies”

• Singapore reports 690 new cases

  Singapore on Wednesday reported 690 new coronavirus cases, taking the total number of infections to 15,641.

  The health ministry said the vast majority of the fresh cases are work permit holders living in dormitories, and only six are Singapore citizens or residents.

  On Tuesday, the city state reported 528 new Covid-19 cases, the lowest number in a week, after a record high of 1,426 new cases the previous Tuesday. There have been 14 deaths.

  Singapore on Wednesday also reported a slight increase in overall unemployment in the last quarter, to 2.4 per cent, as the Ministry of Manpower warned that the Covid-19 pandemic and protection measures to contain it have “severely disrupted economic activity” and will result in more job losses.
• “Labour market conditions are likely to worsen in the upcoming quarter, given the sharp fall in demand globally as well as in Singapore as firms adjust to circuit breaker measures,” the ministry said.