US faces severe economic downturn as virus tolls fall in hardest-hit Europe

May 18, 2020: The world's biggest economy faces a severe downtown but will not suffer another Great Depression, US Fed chief Jerome Powell said on Sunday, as three hardest-hit countries in Europe reported low death tolls and lockdowns eased.

Italy recorded the fewest deaths from coronavirus, 145, in one day since its two-month lockdown began, while Spain had 87 new virus-related deaths -- the first time the number has fallen below 100 in two months.

Restaurants, bars and cafes will be among the businesses allowed to reopen from Monday in Italy, and Spain will also further relax its lockdown measures, except in Madrid and Barcelona.

Britain also registered its lowest daily increase since late March, with 170 fatalities. However, that number did not include Northern Ireland due to a technical issue -- and these figures are often lower on weekends due to lags in reporting.

With a worldwide virus death toll above 315,000 and the global economy reeling from the vast damage caused by stay-at-home orders, numerous European countries are lifting restrictions to provide much-needed respite for their beleaguered and impatient populations

Weekend leisure-seekers enjoyed reopened beaches in France, Greece and Italy, and Britons basked in sunny parks.

In the United States, too, with more than 30 million jobs destroyed, states have begun reopening even though federal guidelines for a two-week decline in cases have not always been met.

The US economy could "easily" collapse by 20 to 30 percent this quarter, and unemployment could peak at 20 to 25 percent, but, "it should be a much shorter downturn than you would associate with the 1930s," Powell, the Federal Reserve Chairman, said on CBS's "60 Minutes."

AFP/APP