Recommendations to the Cabinet on possible changes to lockdown regulations have been deferred until next week, pending a full health assessment report from the government’s Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC) on Covid-19.
The Cabinet said in a statement the recommendations had been made by the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC).
The statement said: ‘The recommendations are based on submissions made by various sectors and deliberations by the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure.’
The 50-strong MAC, led by Professor Salim Abdool Karim, was expected to make a full presentation to the NCCC by early next week, according to Cabinet spokesperson Phumla Williams.
News24 reported that submissions to the NCCC included a plea by some lobby groups and the Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane to consider reinstating the alcohol ban, and a request to allow salons and hairdressers to resume business under level 3 of the lockdown.
Said Williams: ‘However, Cabinet decided to defer approval of the recommendations pending a full health assessment report from the Ministerial Health Advisory Committee on Covid-19.’
Positive cases rose to 58 568, and deaths to 1 284 – 39 in the Western Cape, 31 in the Eastern Cape and four in North West.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said the recovery rate was 56.8% or 33 252 recoveries.
So far, South Africa had conducted 1 028 399 Covid-19 tests.
Williams said the Cabinet appealed to South Africans ‘to adhere (to) and voluntarily comply with measures’ to curb the spread of infection.
On the global scene, the BBC reported that financial markets ‘have tumbled amid fears that an uptick in coronavirus cases will hurt the economic recovery’.
The report said that, in the United States (US), the three main financial indexes saw their worst day in weeks, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down almost 7%.
The decline came a day after America’s central bank said the US faced a long road to recovery. This followed a weeks-long rally that had helped shares recover some ground from March lows.
The report said that European and Asian shares also dropped, with the UK’s FTSE 100 sinking about 4%. In Germany, the Dax fell 4.4%, while in France the CAC 40 ended 4.4% lower.
It said last week’s surprise report showing US employers had restarted hiring in May had ‘helped to push the Nasdaq to new highs’.
But the US Labor Department reported yesterday that another 1.5 million people had filed new unemployment claims last week, and that more than 30 million continued to collect benefits.