Paris (AFP)

The devastating effects of the coronavirus on the economies were clarified on Thursday, prompting many countries, like France, to break out of confinement when the pandemic killed more than 264,000 people worldwide.

Unheard of since 1945: like many other powers, the United Kingdom, which accuses more than 30,000 dead, sees its economy shrinking in unprecedented proportions, with a 14% recession predicted this year by the Bank of England .

In France, nearly half a million jobs have been destroyed in the private sector and activity remains down by a third compared to normal. The Prime Minister, Edouard Philippe, must specify Thursday the modalities of the deconfinement envisaged from May 11 in the second economy of the European Union.

This will take place in a "progressive" and "differentiated" way, he warned. The leader must in particular specify the conditions for reopening schools, very controversial in this country where the pandemic has killed nearly 26,000 people.

In the United States, the most affected country with more than 73,000 deaths, more than 3.1 million new unemployed were counted in one week, bringing the total to 33.5 million since the start of this pandemic which left China in late 2019 .

"It's worse than Pearl Harbor," President Donald Trump said on Wednesday evening when he spoke of the Japanese surprise attack of 1941 that had pushed the United States into World War II.

"It's worse than the World Trade Center," he added, referring to the September 11, 2001 attacks that left nearly 3,000 people dead.

He also renewed his criticism of China, saying the pandemic "should never have happened". Beijing has brushed aside "false" words.

- Famines in sight -

In the United Kingdom, the confinement must be extended Thursday but Prime Minister Boris Johnson, himself a survivor of the Covid-19, must announce the relaxation of certain restrictions on Sunday.

However, "the most devastating and destabilizing effects will be felt in the poorest countries," said the UN Thursday, which wants to raise $ 4.7 billion to "protect millions of lives."

"If we do not act now, we must prepare for a significant increase in conflict, hunger and poverty. The specter of multiple famines is looming," warned senior official Mark Lowcock.

In Brazil, where the coronavirus has killed more than 8,000 people, mortality is particularly high among the most disadvantaged, especially in the black population. "The pandemic is only widening the historical inequalities inherited from slavery," said Emanuelle Goes, of the Fiocruz Institute in Rio de Janeiro.

In the UK, black men and women are at least four times more likely to die from the virus than their white compatriots in the same age group, according to an official study.

- Wave of suicides? -

And in the United States, the lack of health coverage and the fear of arrest discourage many undocumented migrants from seeking treatment. People "are afraid to go to the hospital because of anti-migration measures," said Francisco Moya, an elected official in the Queens district of New York.

In Australia, the stress and financial hardship caused by the pandemic could drive thousands of people to suicide, far more than the victims of the disease itself, according to the University of Sydney.

Another corollary of confinement: reports of domestic violence have increased by up to 60% in Europe, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

In this continent, the most affected with more than 150,000 deaths, deconfinement is accelerating in several countries.

Particularly in Germany: fort of "very satisfactory" infection figures, Berlin decided on Wednesday to lift almost all of the restrictions imposed since mid-March.

Notable exceptions: the closing of borders and the prohibition of major sporting, festive or cultural events with the public.

But the Bundesliga, interrupted two months ago when the coronavirus put international sport on forced rest, will resume in mid-May behind closed doors.

If France has drawn a line under the end of its season, England, Spain and Italy hope to resume in June.

Belgium will reopen non-essential businesses on Monday. Conversely, the city of Moscow announced Thursday compulsory wearing a mask in transport, while Russia, long spared, experienced a sharp increase in the number of cases detected.

- "More modesty" -

Very hard hit and also engaged in a careful deconfinement, Italy (nearly 30,000 dead) will serologically test 150,000 inhabitants of the Rome region to have a more precise estimate of the number of people who have been infected.

"Being positive at the rapid test does not mean that we are protected," warns Professor Sergio Bernardini, one of the leaders of this campaign.

In Spain, where the pandemic has claimed more than 25,000 lives, life is gradually resuming, but the greatest vigilance remains required for health professionals.

"You can't trust anything because now everyone is suspicious. We have to protect ourselves, not touch anything, wash ourselves well, and that keeps us in constant tension", explains Jordi Rodriguez, paramedic in Catalonia.

A "precipitated" deconfinement of Spain would be an "absolute, total and unforgivable error", warned Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

Cuban thriller Pope Leonardo Padura believes that the pandemic must "teach a little more modesty" to man. "The human being was the winner in the biological, historical, natural fight on the planet. And yet, appears a microscopic creature which is able to beat us ..."

burx-phs / sg

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