FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

New Zealand has eliminated the transmission of the virus domestically and will lift all containment measures except for border controls, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday, making it one of the first countries to do so.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS * More than 7.03 million people have been reported infected with the coronavirus globally and 403,772 have died, a Reuters tally showed as of 0947 GMT on Monday.

ASIA-PACIFIC

* China on Monday challenged U.S. Senator Rick Scott to show evidence supporting his accusation that Beijing is trying to slow down or sabotage the development of a COVID-19 vaccine by Western countries.

* At least half of Singapore's newly discovered cases show no symptoms, the co-head of the government's virus task force told Reuters on Monday, reinforcing the city-state's decision to ease lockdown restrictions very gradually.

* People trickled into temples and mosques in India on Monday as the federal government lifted most restrictions on public places, even as the country added a record number of infections in a single day.

* Japan will stop short of offering blanket tests, and instead target the vulnerable and those most at risk in seeking to prevent a second wave of infections.

* Pakistan has recorded more than 100,000 infections, officials statistics showed on Monday and the rise in daily infections has prompted authorities to begin strict enforcement of government safety measures.

EUROPE

* Poland will close two coal mines owned by state-run JSW and ten mines from PGG group on Tuesday for three weeks to stop the spread of the coronavirus among miners.

* British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is planning to relax rules on outdoor dining and weddings, as well as speed up government investment plans to limit the economic damage from the coronavirus, newspapers reported on Saturday.

* Scotland and Northern Ireland reported no new deaths from the coronavirus in the previous 14 hours, authorities said on Sunday.

* Pope Francis warned Italians to not let their guard down and urged them to obey government rules on social distancing and wearing masks.

AMERICAS

* The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday reported 1,920,904 new cases of the coronavirus, an increase of 29,214 from its previous count, and said COVID-19 deaths in the United States had risen by 709 to 109,901.

* Brazil removed from public view months of data on its COVID-19 epidemic on Saturday, as President Jair Bolsonaro defended delays and changes to official record-keeping of the world's second-largest coronavirus outbreak.

* The death toll in Canada edged up 0.9% to 7,773 from 7,703 on Saturday, further evidence that the worst of the pandemic has passed.

* Chile revised its death toll sharply higher on Sunday, adding fatalities from databases that previously had not been included.

* Mexico, which reported 3,484 new cases and 188 additional fatalities, remains at the highest level of contagion alert going into the second week of its phased return to normal.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* Mall operators in the Gulf region are delaying new mega-projects as the pandemic and low oil prices upend a retail industry built around huge centers catering to tourists and wealthy locals.

* The coronavirus is putting Egypt's private cement industry under even more pressure. The pandemic has stymied a nascent rebound in sales, raising the possibility of plant closures, industry executives and analysts say.

* South Africa has agreed on a daily fee of up to 16,000 rands ($950) for COVID-19 patients that get treated in critical care beds in private hospitals. It includes the cost of using the bed, paying a team of specialists, and additional services.

* Total cases in Saudi Arabia exceeded 100,000 on Sunday as the kingdom struggles to get to grips with a rise in new infections over the past 10 days.

ECONOMIC FALLOUT

* World shares paused on Monday as investors turned cautious after a 42% surge since March, as economies continued to struggle with the pandemic.

* German industrial output posted its steepest plunge on record in April as the pandemic forced companies in Europe's largest economy to scale back production.

* The Bank of Slovenia expects the county's GDP to fall 6.5% in 2020 and then rise by 4.9% in 2021.

* The Italian economy will contract by around 8.3% this year, national statistics bureau ISTAT said on Monday.