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British Chancellor Rishi Sunak said that his government is "grappling with something that is unprecedented" after figures showed the UK economy suffered its biggest slump on record. As reported by BBC.com (12/8), the economy shrank 20.4% between April and June compared with the first three months of the year. The two consecutive quarters of decline caused by the Covid-19 lockdown pushed the UK officially into recession. He told the BBC that it was "a very difficult and uncertain time". Responding to fears that the economic turmoil could trigger mass unemployment, the chancellor said the government should not pretend that "absolutely everybody can and will be able to go back to the job they had". 

Britain has suffered the deepest recession among the world’s top economies this year, shrinking by a fifth in the second quarter alone when much of the economy was delayed as part of efforts to contain the coronavirus pandemic. As reported by APNews.com (12/8), the Office for National Statistics said that Britain is in recession and the 20.4% quarterly drop is the worst since records began in 1955. While many of the lockdown restrictions have since been eased, the country faces a tough time in coming months, with unemployment likely to spike as the government phases out a support program that has effectively kept nearly 10 million workers on company payrolls. Britain’s recession is deeper than those recorded by comparable economies in Europe   notably Germany, France and Italy//APNews/BBC

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Germany has recorded its biggest daily increase in coronavirus cases in more than three months, as countries across the region struggle to contain a surge in infections. As reported by BBC.com (12/8), the latest official figures showed a rise of more than 1,200 cases in Germany in the past 24 hours. German Health Minister, Jens Spahn said that the increase was due, in part, to people returning from holidays. It came as Germany warned against non-essential trips to parts of Spain. German Foreign Ministry said it had added a partial travel warning to the Spanish capital Madrid and the Basque region on Tuesday (11/8) amid rising infections there. Warnings were already in place for the regions of Aragon, Catalonia and Navarra. Germany has recorded more than 9,000 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic began//BBC

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New Zealand announced its first locally transmitted coronavirus infections more than 100 days on Tuesday and issued a stay-at-home lockdown order for the country's largest city.After receiving global praise for its success containing the virus, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said four cases had been detected in a single family in Auckland from an unknown source.Until Tuesday, the World Health Organization had hailed the country as an example to others for having successfully eliminated community transmission.Auckland will be locked down for at least three days from Wednesday and some social distancing restrictions will be reintroduced in the rest of the country//JP

photo : khaleejtimes

The United Nations has said 50,000 tonnes of wheat flour will be sent to Beirut to stabilise Lebanon’s wheat supply. A report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) released on Tuesday said the World Food Programme would be sending 50,000 tonnes of wheat flour to the Lebanese capital in the aftermath of the deadly explosion in the port city. At least 171 people were killed and more than 6,000 others injured in the explosion believed to have been caused by a fire that ignited a 2,750-tonne stockpile of highly volatile ammonium nitrate.  The material had been stored at the port since 2013 with few safeguards despite numerous warnings of the danger.Reeling from years-long political and economic crises, Lebanese citizens have taken to the streets over the disaster, with many calling for heads to roll and for major changes. Prime Minister Hassan Diab announced the resignation of his government late on Monday, spelling even deeper turmoil ahead//Reuters