Health authorities in the Philippines, France and the United States have reported an easing in the spread of the coronavirus as the lifting of curbs beckons in the three countries.
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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday approved the easing of some coronavirus restrictions in the capital and nearby provinces, with daily COVID-19 infections well down from a peak six weeks ago.
Religious gatherings and dining in restaurants will be allowed in Metro Manila and in the provinces of Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna and Cavite for two weeks beginning on Saturday but non-essential travel will remain prohibited.
Outdoor tourist attractions may be opened but only at 30 per cent capacity.
Since the government reimposed stricter rules on movement, new daily infections have fallen from a high of 15,310 on April 2.
Daily cases this month have so far averaged about 6700 in the country, which has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Southeast Asia.
Duterte appealed to the public to "tone down" any religious gatherings and to stay mindful of the current situation.
"There is no way of knowing how long this (pandemic) will last," he said in a regular televised address.
French health authorities reported 19,461 new confirmed infections on Thursday, representing a weekly rise of less than 2 per cent for the first time in almost a year.
The total number of hospitalisations for the disease fell by 598, decreasing for the 10th day in a row to 23,656, the lowest since October 31.
The country reported 131 new deaths from COVID-19 on Thursday for an overall toll of 107,205, the eighth highest in the world.
The gliding seven-day average of new deaths fell further to 200, the lowest since October 26, from a 2021 high of 450 in early February.
After exiting its third lockdown at the start of the month, France is hoping to lift its last anti-coronavirus measures at the start of July.
The next step will be the reopening on May 19 of bars' and restaurants' terraces as well as movie theatres and museums.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday advised that fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks outdoors and can avoid wearing them indoors in most places, updated guidance the agency said will allow life to begin to return to normal.
The new guidance will still call for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters but could ease restrictions for reopening workplaces and schools.
The more people get vaccinated, the faster infections will drop - and the harder it will be for the coronavirus to mutate enough to escape vaccines, according to health experts.
This move comes as nearly half of the US population has received at least one dose of a vaccine and coronavirus cases are at their lowest rate since September.
Coronavirus-linked deaths in the US are at their lowest point since last April.
Australian Associated Press
