Spain’s coronavirus death toll jumps by biggest daily amount so far
Spain suffered 849 deaths from coronavirus between yesterday and today, figures have shown, the biggest daily rise in the fatality toll so far.
The number of coronavirus deaths rose to 8,189 today from 7,340 on Monday. The number of cases rose to 94,418 from 85,195.
There have now been more than 770,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus around the world and 37,500 deaths.
Spain is second only to Italy in the number of people in the country who have died from the virus. In Italy, 11,591 people have died.
The US has the most cases of any country with more than 160,000. Mainland China, where the epidemic started, has suffered 3,305 deaths from 81,518 cases.
At the weekend the Spanish government toughened lockdown measures to try to control the spread of the virus in the country.
Spain is in its third week of near-total lockdown, with all non-essential workers ordered to stay home for at least two weeks.
With the country all but closed for business, the government has called on the EU to do more to support Eurozone economies.
Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz on Sunday said: “We need a Europe in which workers’ rights are reinforced.”
Despite expectations of a deep European recession, stock markets rose today after signs of life were seen in China’s manufacturing sector.
Spain’s Ibex 35 index was 1.3 per cent higher in morning trading, while the pan-European Stoxx 600 was 1.6 per cent higher.
The Spanish government has faced criticism from some business leaders for its strict lockdown policies.
Antonio Garamendi, president of Spain’s business association, said at the weekend: “If you stop the country, we’ll have a huge social problem within five months.”
However, other business leaders have insisted that such measures are necessary to prevent the virus spreading further.