Brazil to extend border closure with Venezuela – Justice Minister Moro

BRASILIA, March 31 (Reuters) – Brazil will extend its border closure with Venezuela for health reasons, but has ruled out closing the border to citizens returning from abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic, Justice Minister Sergio Moro said on Tuesday.

Moro also said he will discuss with Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta what the country’s security forces can do in the fight against coronavirus. Mandetta again said that maximum social distancing must be maintained right now to limit the spread of the virus. (Reporting by Ricardo Brito Writing by Jamie McGeever)

Coronavirus: SLGA ramps up health and safety measures at liquor stores

The union representing workers at provincially owned liquor stores in Saskatchewan says additional measures are being taken to protect staff and customers during the coronavirus pandemic.

Along with increased sanitizing practices, SGEU (Saskatchewan Government and General Employees’ Union) said all employees are now required to wear gloves.

Chile´s central bank slashes interest rate again, warns of economic contraction

SANTIAGO, March 31 (Reuters) – Chile´s central bank on Tuesday slashed its benchmark interest rate to 0.50%, its lowest since 2009, with policymakers warning of a severe economic contraction in March as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

The bank had already dropped the interest rate three-quarters of a percentage point in an emergency session earlier this month, to 1%, shortly after the first cases of coronavirus was reported in Chile. (Reporting by Dave Sherwood Editing by Chris Reese)

Kelowna songwriters’ new hit pays tribute to medical workers

Kelowna singer and songwriters, Jim and Kim Rhindress, have written a new song giving thanks to everyone working in the medical field.

The pair said their song, Health Care Heroes, is being recorded this week, and a video is being made by an Okanagan filmmaker, CJ Clayton, to go along with the song.

Calgary volunteers sew masks for medical community amid COVID-19 pandemic

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the globe and more health-care workers are treating those affected by the virus, some professionals have expressed concerns around mask shortages.

One volunteer group in Calgary is hoping to combat those concerns by creating and donating masks to medical workers in the city.

German Unemployment Rises Marginally In March

German unemployment increased less than expected in March ahead of strict containment measures taken by the government to curb the spread of coronavirus, data published by the Federal Employment Agency showed on Tuesday.

The number of people out of work rose by 1,000 in March, after falling by 8,000 in February. However, economists were forecasting an increase of 29,000.

The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 5 percent in March. The rate was forecast to rise to 5.1 percent.

The agency cautioned that the report does not reflect the real impact of the coronavirus outbreak as data was collected before March 12.

Today’s labor market data look to be the last calm before the storm, Carsten Brzeski, an economist at ING said. The German labor market had already lost further traction before entering the Covid-19 lockdown, he observed.

The economist said during the financial crisis, short-time work schemes were one of German government’s most important tools to stabilize the economy. It simply is too early to tell whether short-time work schemes will have the same magical effect this time.

Data published by Destatis, earlier in the day, showed that the jobless rate remained unchanged at an adjusted 3.2 percent in February.

According to results of the labor force survey, nearly 1.50 million people were unemployed in February. This was an increase of 128,000 compared with the same month a year earlier.

Coronavirus: Family grieves Saskatchewan widow Alice Grove in COVID-19 related death

A family grieving the COVID-19 related death of a Saskatchewan senior is urging the provincial government to be more transparent on the location of active cases.

Alice Grove was a 75-year-old widow who lived alone on a farm near North Battleford.

Coronavirus: Canada’s COVID-19 death toll surpasses 100

Canada’s death toll from the novel coronavirus has now surpassed 100 following an announcement of five more deaths in B.C.

As of Tuesday, Canada’s COVID-19 death toll now sits at 101 while confirmed cases have now reached 8,579.

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More to come.

Coronavirus: Dedicated Montreal volunteers continue serving their community

With social distancing keeping employees and volunteers at home, many Montreal organizations that help the needy are struggling through the COVID-19 crisis.

But Volunteer West Island, a group that pairs volunteers with various community groups and provides its own programs to the needy, is still doing what it can to help its community.

Caterpillar says it will not give annual salary increases this year

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N) on Tuesday said it will not hand out annual salary increases this year as part of cost cut plan to deal with the coronavirus economic fallout.

The company also said it will not pay out bonuses to eligible employees next year.