FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

The Americas have emerged as the new epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, as outbreaks accelerate in Peru, Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS * More than 5.5 million people have been reported infected with the novel coronavirus globally and 346,731 have died, according to a Reuters tally as of 1610 GMT on Tuesday.

* For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread, open https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser. * For a U.S.-focused tracker with state-by-state and county map, open https://tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T in an external browser.

* For Eikon users, click on MacroVitals cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and a summary of developments. EUROPE

* Germany plans to ease social distancing steps from June 29, a week earlier than previously planned, and aims to lift a travel warning for 31 European countries from mid-June. * Spain urged its European Union partners to set up common rules to open borders and re-establish the freedom of travel in the Schengen Area as national lockdowns are phased out.

* A global campaign to fund the development of vaccines and therapies against COVID-19 has so far raised 9.5 billion euros ($10.4 billion), the head of the European Commission said. * The United Kingdom's death toll surpassed 47,000, a dire human cost that could define the premiership of Boris Johnson.

* France's coronavirus death toll rose by less than a 100 for the sixth day running, raising hopes that the worst of the pandemic is over for the country. AMERICAS

* Twenty U.S. states reported an increase in new cases of COVID-19 for the week ended May 24, up from 13 states in the prior week, as the death toll from the novel coronavirus approaches 100,000, according to a Reuters analysis. (Open https://tmsnrt.rs/2WTOZDR in an external browser for a Reuters interactive) * As Brazil's daily COVID-19 death rate climbs to the highest in the world, a University of Washington study is warning its total death toll could climb five-fold to 125,000 by early August.

* Norway's Equinor ASA and Anglo-French firm Perenco are among at least five oil producers that have registered cases at facilities off the coast of Brazil, according to industry and regulatory sources. * The WHO promised a swift review of data on hydroxychloroquine, probably by mid-June, after safety concerns prompted the group to suspend the malaria drug's use in a large trial on COVID-19 patients.

* Three dozen inmates in Salvadoran prisons have tested positive, health authorities said. ASIA-PACIFIC

* Shanghai Junshi Biosciences Co Ltd said it planned to start clinical studies to test its experimental COVID-19 antibodies by the second quarter of the year in the United States and China. * Indian states witnessing millions of migrant laborers returning from the big cities are recording rising infections, officials said, fearing that the pandemic could spread through villages where medical care is basic at best.

* Australia will not open its borders "anytime soon", the prime minister said, but added the country will continue discussions with neighboring New Zealand for a trans-Tasman safe travel zone. MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* South Africa's churches and other places of worship can reopen their doors from June, but will be limited to 50 people, President Cyril Ramaphosa said. * Saudi Arabia will begin easing restrictions on movement and travel this week, with an aim to lift the curfew completely — with the exception of the holy city of Mecca — from June 21.

* Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity reopened to worshippers and tourists as Palestinian authorities eased restrictions in the occupied West Bank. ECONOMIC FALLOUT

* Global equity and crude oil markets rose as investors shrugged off Sino-U.S. tensions to focus on more stimulus in China and a reopening world economy. * LATAM Airlines Group, the continent's largest carrier, filed for U.S. bankruptcy protection, becoming the world's largest carrier so far to seek an emergency reorganization due to the pandemic.

* Europe's coronavirus pandemic has amplified financial vulnerabilities, raising the specter of further crises ahead as debt levels soar and banks struggle, the European Central Bank said. (Compiled by Anita Kobylinska, Milla Nissi and Aditya Soni; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Sriraj Kalluvila)