The coronavirus pandemic has taken a huge toll on the global economy, with many people and businesses needing financial support.

In the US, a coronavirus aid bill has given millions of hard-up Americans an essential lifeline to weather the worst of the Covid-19 storm.

But on Friday night, unemployment benefits that were part of that aid expired, as the US Congress was unable to reach consensus on a new relief package.

That means payments of $600 (£458) a week to millions of people have ended overnight.

US President Donald Trump has blamed the Democrats for the impasse. Democratic leaders, meanwhile, said a White House proposal to extend the pay-out for seven days was worthless.

Republicans want a smaller relief plan than one passed by the Democrat-controlled House. Talks are set to continue on Saturday, so we’ll bring you the latest when we know more.

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Image source, Reuters

A second person has died with Covid-19 in Vietnam, a day after the first coronavirus-related fatality in the country, whose containment strategy was considered highly effective early in the pandemic.

The two people, men aged 61 and 70, reportedly died in a hospital in Da Nang, the city at the epicentre of Vietnam’s outbreak.

Both of the patients had underlying health conditions, according to Vietnamese media.

There had been no new locally transmitted infections for more than three months, before an outbreak was reported in the resort of Da Nang earlier this week.

The country, which has a population of around 95 million, has reported just 546 cases since the pandemic began.

The country received praise for both its timely efforts to contain the virus and for the care it was able to offer a Scottish pilot who spent two months in a coma after developing Covid-19.

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As we reported earlier, America’s top infectious diseases expert has expressed hope that a Covid-19 vaccine will be ready for use this year.

But how much progress has been made on developing a vaccine?

Analysis by BBC health correspondent James Gallagher showed about 140 are in early development, and around two dozen are now being tested on people in clinical trials.

These efforts include:

• Trials of the vaccine developed by Oxford University show it can trigger an immune response and a deal has been signed with AstraZeneca to supply 100 million doses in the UK alone
• The first human trial data back in May indicated the first eight patients taking part in a US study all produced antibodies that could neutralise the virus
• A group in China showed a vaccine was safe and led to protective antibodies, external being made. It is being made available to the Chinese military

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Image source, PA Media

Turning to the UK, the government has told people who are most at risk from coronavirus they no longer have to shield at home and can return to work.

More than two million at high risk will no longer need to isolate in most of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

However, the UK government’s plan to ease a host of lockdown restrictions has been dealt a blow by rising infections in parts of the country.

On Friday, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson applied the brakes to easing restrictions further and as some businesses remain closed.

England's chief medical officer, professor Chris Whitty, warned the UK may have reached the limit on lifting lockdown as cases rise.

He said the "idea that we can open up everything and keep the virus under control" was wrong.

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The leader of a secretive South Korean sect at the centre of the country’s early coronavirus outbreak was arrested on Saturday for allegedly hindering the government’s effort to contain the epidemic.

Lee Man-hee, the founder of the Shincheonji Church, has been accused of withholding information from authorities during the peak of the outbreak.

The church, a fringe Christian group, has been linked to more than 5,200 coronavirus infections, or 36% of the total number of cases in the country.

Lee allegedly hid details on members and their meeting places as authorities tried to trace infection routes in February, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, external.

Lee Man-hee, who founded the Shincheonji Church in 1984, claims he is the second coming of Jesus Christ and identifies as "the promised pastor" mentioned in the Bible.

The group has previously apologised for its role in the outbreak and said it was co-operating with authorities.

Find out more about the sect by watching the video below.

Here’s some more on that grilling Dr Fauci was subjected to by US lawmakers on Friday.

Dr Fauci clashed with congressman Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican, over whether the US government should limit protests when many Americans have also been told not to go to church or gyms.

"You're putting words into my mouth," the top US infectious disease expert said.

You can watch the video below.

The coronavirus death toll in Mexico has surpassed that of the UK, as the country recorded an 688 additional deaths, bringing the total to 46,688.

Mexico, one of Latin America’s worst-affected countries, now has the third-highest coronavirus death toll in the world after Brazil and the US.

Coronavirus infections continue to rise in Mexico, with 8,458 new cases on Friday taking the total to 424,637.

Local authorities have previously said they believe the real number of infections is likely to be significantly higher than those reported.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is eager to restart the country's flagging economy, but the ongoing surge in cases has scuppered his phased plan to lift restrictions, announced in May.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

The most senior infectious diseases expert in the US, Dr Anthony Fauci, has told US lawmakers he was hopeful an effective Covid-19 vaccine will be readily available by the end of 2020.

“We hope that by the time we get into late fall and early winter, we will have in fact a vaccine that we can say that would be safe and effective,” Dr Fauci told a House of Representatives subcommittee on Friday.

“One can never guarantee the safety or effectiveness unless you do the trial, but we are cautiously optimistic this will be successful.”

Dr Fauci expressed scepticism of vaccine efforts in China and Russia, telling lawmakers he did not believe “we will have to depend on other countries to get us vaccines”.

Governments around the world have pledged billions of dollars for a Covid-19 vaccine, some of which have entered late-stage human trials.

However, it is still uncertain which, if any, of the vaccines may work until more testing has been done.

Read more about the global effort to develop a Covid-19 vaccine.

Hello and welcome to our coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.

Our teams from around the world are again ready to bring you the latest developments.

Let's kick off with a summary of the latest top stories.

• As it stands there have been 17.5 million infections and 679,000 deaths related to the coronavirus pandemic globally, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University, external
• Dr Anthony Fauci, America’s top infectious disease expert, has told the US Congress he was “cautiously optimistic” that a “safe and effective” vaccine against coronavirus will be ready for use by the end of 2020
• Mexico’s coronavirus death toll has surpassed 46,000, overtaking the UK as the country with the third-highest number of Covid-19 fatalities in the world
• People shielding against coronavirus can now leave their home and return to work in England, but a further easing of lockdown restrictions has been postponed
• The leader of a secretive South Korean sect at the centre of the country’s early coronavirus outbreak was arrested on Saturday for allegedly hindering the government’s effort to contain the epidemic
• A second person has died with Covid-19 in Vietnam, a day after the first coronavirus-related fatality in the country, which prided itself on its effective containment strategy early in the pandemic
• Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro told crowds on Friday that “almost all of you will catch” coronavirus one day, in comments that echo his tendency to play down the seriousness of the disease

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