Summary of Latest Developments.

Countries around the world including Australia, New Zealand, Iran and Spain are moving to ease coronavirus lockdowns as daily cases and deaths slow. Italy has announced it will ease its two-month old controls from May 4.

At least 1.3 million Australians have downloaded the government's COVIDsafe tracing app, as support for Prime Minister Scott Morrison surges thanks to his handling of the outbreak.

Worldwide, the number of people confirmed to have the coronavirus has risen to more than 2.97 million and at least 206,000 have died, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Some 868,000 people have recovered.

Here are the latest updates:

Kids return to school in Norway.

Norway, which says it has the new coronavirus epidemic under control, reopened primary schools to the youngest students on Monday, in another step toward a gradual normalisation, though some parents expressed concern.

One week after nursery schools, pupils aged six to 10 started returning to their school desks after six weeks of remote learning from home in the Nordic country. Classes were however reduced to a maximum of 15 students.

Norway has progressively begun lifting restrictions imposed on March 12 to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Britain making good progress with antibody tests - junior minister.

The United Kingdom is continuing to test whether antibody tests can be used in the fight against the novel coronavirus and is hopeful they will work, junior health minister Edward Argar said.

"Tests continue to be tested, the sign at the moment is positive but we're not there yet in saying this is 100 percent going to work," he told Talk Radio.

"We are continuing to research at pace ... we are making very good progress now and I am hopeful we will see some positive news on that front." (Reporting by Kate Holton and Guy Faulconbridge; editing by Michael Holden).

Pakistan extends flight ban until May 15.

Pakistan has extended a ban on all international flights into and out of the country, with certain exceptions, until May 15, the country's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has announced.

"As per decision taken by the government of Pakistan, suspension of operation of all international passenger, chartered and private aircraft inbound flights to Pakistan is extended upto Friday, May 15, 2020," said a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) issued by the CAA.

"The only exception to the above would be the diplomatic, special/cargo flights and flights of national carrier to/from Pakistan holding special approval from the competent authority for transporting stranded passengers, however, passengers onboard any or all inbound flights shall be subjected to thorough checking as per established procedures including screening, swab testing and isolation/quarantine as per the advice of the health professionals."

The government has been allowing flights to allow Pakistanis stranded in other parts of the world to return home, as well as for foreign nationals to return to their home countries through flights arranged by their respective governments.

Germany, Thailand, Pakistan report latest coronavirus cases.

A number of countries have been updating their data on the coronavirus.

Thailand has reported nine new cases and one death, Germany's Robert Koch Institute has reported 1,018 new cases and 110 deaths and Pakistan has reported 605 new cases with total deaths rising to 281.

Pakistan has said it will also introduce a test-trace quarantine programme, according to Al Jazeera's Asad Hashim who reports the policy was approved at a high-level meeting last week.

"It is a new policy under which the provincial governments with the support of district administrations. will locate the contacts of the confirmed cases and test them," said Zafar Mirza, the country's de facto health minister. "If any are found to be positive, they will be quarantined."

South Korea investigating how patients get coronavirus again.

South Korea's made great strides in tackling the coronavirus with daily cases now well below 20, but it has also found people who were thought to have been cleared of the virus getting it again.

Finding out whether it is reinfection or reactivation could be crucial for efforts to develop a vaccine.

Source: News Agencies.