FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

Beijing closed more businesses and residential compounds on Friday, while a top decision-making body of China's ruling Communist Party said the country would take steps to support the economy amid growing COVID-19 and Ukraine conflict risks. DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

* Eikon users, see COVID-19: MacroVitals https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and summary of news. ASIA-PACIFIC

* China suspended cross-border freight train services with North Korea following consultations after COVID-19 infections in its border city of Dandong. * Beijing's zero-COVID strategy has had dire consequences for the millions of Chinese living abroad, most of whom have been unable to see family and friends at home for two years even as the rest of the world eases travel restrictions.

* Tens of millions of Indonesian Muslims are expected to travel back to their hometowns to celebrate Eid al-Fitr in the coming days. The decision to once again allow mass travel home comes after authorities banned the tradition in the past two years to contain the spread of the coronavirus. * South Korea said it will lift an outdoor face mask mandate next week, despite opposition from the incoming government which labelled the decision "premature".

EUROPE * The annual Oktoberfest, the world's largest beer festival, will take place this year without any coronavirus restrictions after being cancelled for the past two years due to the pandemic, Munich's mayor said.

* Four members of Switzerland's special forces who were fired for refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19 have lost their bid for reinstatement, a court said. AMERICAS

* The Federal Reserve is expected to approve plans next week to reduce a nearly $9 trillion balance sheet that ballooned as part of its efforts to fight the pandemic-induced recession. * Ecuador will immediately lift mask mandates for both indoor and outdoor spaces thanks to significant gains made against coronavirus, President Guillermo Lasso said on Thursday.

AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST * South Africa may be entering a fifth COVID wave earlier than expected after a sustained rise in infections over the past 14 days, health officials and scientists said.

* The number of foreign visitors arriving in Turkey jumped 129.7% from a year earlier to 2.08 million in March, data showed, as the sector continued to recover from the impact of measures to combat the spread of COVID-19. MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine still has a role to play in the fight against the pandemic, even as sales slow and the company charges more in some places, CEO Pascal Soriot said, the latest drugmaker to warn about a global supply glut. * British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline said its COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed with SK bioscience has been submitted for regulatory approval in South Korea after positive Phase III clinical data.

ECONOMIC IMPACT * Hong Kong stocks jumped the most in six weeks, and Chinese shares rose on Friday after authorities vowed at a top-level meeting to step up policy support to stabilise the economy and financial markets hit by domestic COVID-19 outbreaks and rising geopolitical risks.

* China's oil demand is expected to stay weak heading into May as COVID-19 lockdowns across the country curtail travel plans during the Labour Day holiday season, analysts and traders said. * Spain slashed its economic growth outlook for this year to 4.3% from 7%, the downgrade reflecting concerns that the fallout from the Ukraine war will cut short a global rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic.

* Italy's economy shrank by 0.2% in the first quarter from the previous three months, preliminary data showed, with activity hit by the coronavirus, high commodity prices and the war in Ukraine. (Compiled by Olivier Sorgho and Subhranshu Sahu; Edited by Mark Heinrich)