FACTBOX-Latest on the worldwide spread of coronavirus

* With only four days' notice, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday delayed in-person learning at public schools for a second time for most students. ASIA-PACIFIC * The metropolitan government in South Korea's capital Seoul said it would seek 4.6 billion won ($4 million) in damages against a church for causing the spread of the coronavirus by disrupting tracing and testing efforts. * Mainland China reported 32 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, marking the highest daily increase in more than a month.

Australia said it would increase the number of citizens allowed to return home each week to 6,000, while the UK said COVID-19 hospital admissions were doubling every eight days but did not give a clear answer on whether another lockdown would be imposed soon.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS * For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread, open https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser.

* For a U.S.-focused tracker with a state-by-state and county map, open https://tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T in an external browser. * Eikon users, see MacroVitals cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and summary of news.

EUROPE * The French Open will allow only 5,000 spectators per day following a recent spike in COVID-19 cases in the country, the French Tennis Federation (FFT) said.

* The Czech Republic's new COVID-19 infections accelerated as it reported more than 3,000 cases in a single day for the first time on Friday. * The Premier League has urged the British government to stay committed to its plans for a controlled return of fans into stadiums from Oct. 1.

AMERICAS * The major Canadian province of Ontario will clamp down on social gatherings in response to "reckless careless people" who are spreading the coronavirus at illegal parties.

* Several Latin American countries have informed the World Health Organization (WHO) they intend to request more time to sign up for its global COVID-19 vaccine allocation plan known as COVAX. * With only four days' notice, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday delayed in-person learning at public schools for a second time for most students.

ASIA-PACIFIC * The metropolitan government in South Korea's capital Seoul said it would seek 4.6 billion won ($4 million) in damages against a church for causing the spread of the coronavirus by disrupting tracing and testing efforts.

* Mainland China reported 32 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, marking the highest daily increase in more than a month. MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* Israel closed its schools, a day before entering a second national coronavirus lockdown, as daily infections topped 4,500. * The Namibian government said it will open up the country for international travel from Sept. 18 as it ends a six-month long state of emergency.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS * A COVID-19 test known as DnaNudge that gives results in just over an hour and which requires no laboratory was accurate in almost all cases, according to an academic review in the Lancet.

* Roche's Actermra/Roactemra drugs reduces the likelihood patients with COVID-19 related pneumonia need mechanical ventilation, the company said. * Pfizer Inc is betting that its vaccine candidate will show clear evidence of effectiveness early in its clinical trial, according to the company and internal documents reviewed by Reuters.

* France will provide funding for an initiative led by the World Health Organization to buy potential COVID-19 vaccines, but will not source shots through the programme, an official at the French health ministry told Reuters. ECONOMIC IMPACT

* Asian stocks inched up on Friday but lingering disappointment that central banks merely affirmed their monetary support this week, while not promising new stimulus, kept a lid on gains. * Japan's core consumer prices fell at their fastest pace in almost four years in August, dragged mostly by government-sponsored discounts for domestic travel aimed at supporting the battered tourism sector.

* The Bank of England said it was looking more closely at how it might cut interest rates below zero as Britain's economy faces a triple whammy of rising COVID-19 cases, higher unemployment and a possible new Brexit shock. (Compiled by Ramakrishnan M., Krishna Chandra Eluri, Milla Nissi; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Arun Koyyur and Anil D'Silva)