LatAm gov’ts look to economies as COVID-19 cases continue rising

    MEXICO CITY, May 5 -- Though cases of the novel coronavirus disease continue to rise, Latin American governments are looking at how to bolster their ravaged economies.
   The Ecuadorian government on Monday launched the "Together Ecuador" campaign to encourage the consumption of national products, which could contribute to the recovery of the country's economy amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
   The nation has also relaxed the quarantine and moved into the social-distancing phase in order to reactivate the local economy, which has been weakened by the lack of liquidity and the plummeting price of oil, its main export product.
   Ecuador's public health ministry said on Monday that it had registered 2,343 new cases in the last 24 hours to bring the count to 31,881 with a total of 1,569 deaths since the pandemic began.
   Chilean President Sebastian Pinera on Monday urged citizens to be alert but also to remain calm during the pandemic.
   In a speech at La Moneda Palace, Pinera asked citizens to respect the quarantines, curfews, and preventive measures mandated by the government, meanwhile calling on employers "to protect the jobs and health of their workers as a first priority" and to promote adequate working conditions.
   The president also urged legislators to discuss the emergency family income law, which would benefit 4.5 million people affected by the crisis.
   The Chilean health ministry confirmed on Monday that there are 20,643 cases of COVID-19 in the country, with 270 deaths.
   The Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), a Brazilian higher education institution and think tank, has reported that the Brazilian Industry Confidence Index hit in April its lowest level since the index was created in January 2001, and the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced the use of the country's industrial capacity to its lowest historical level.
   According to the FGV, the segments that are most affected by the pandemic are clothing, vehicles, leather and footwear.
   The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Brazil has reached 105,222, while the death toll was 7,288, with a fatality rate of 6.9 percent, the health ministry said on Monday.
   The Peruvian health ministry raised on Monday the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 to 47,372, with 1,344 deaths.
   Though the number of cases is still on the rise, the government has continued its attempt to halt further spread of the virus through measures such as closing borders and enacting quarantines and curfews, which will remain in force until May 10.  Xinhua