Long queues of cars snaked up to McDonald's Corp outlets in Auckland and Wellington from the early hours as people sought a fast food fix. Treasury has estimated jobless rates will jump to 13% even if the lockdown is quickly lifted, and GDP could decline by as much as one-third. New Zealand has reported just 1,124 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 19 deaths, one of the lowest tallies in the world. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index was up 2.4% in early trade on Tuesday as the country eased out of lockdown. "When I talk about elimination it does not mean zero cases, it means zero tolerance for cases," Ardern said.

Source: bd News24 April 28, 2020 01:30 UTC