Merkel reportedly fears Germany could see nearly 20,000 daily Covid-19 cases, but opposes economy-damaging measures
Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned that Germany could soon see thousands of more coronavirus cases each day, but said she wants to keep the economy open, local media reported.
Merkel expressed concern that Covid-19 infections could skyrocket in the country if cases continue to rise daily, Bild newspaper said on Monday.
"If the trend continues as it is now, we'll have 19,200 infections a day. That's like in other countries," Merkel told leaders of her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, the German outlet reported.
The chancellor reportedly stressed the importance of intervening to “contain” the number of new infections, while insisting that the economy is kept running and schools and nurseries remain open.
On Monday, Germany reported 1,192 new Covid-19 cases over the past 24 hours and three new deaths.
Since the start of the pandemic, the country has recorded 285,332 cases resulting in 9,460 deaths, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI).
Germany has gradually lifted coronavirus restrictions purportedly put in place to stop the spread of the virus. However, the country’s foreign ministry has warned against non-essential travel to areas, including foreign countries, where infections have exceeded 50 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last seven days.
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