LATEST NEWS ABOUT COVID-19:
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NUMBERS
* Confirmed cases in Australia: 6,152
* Australian deaths: 54 (22 in NSW, 13 in Vic, four in Qld, six in WA, four in Tas, two in ACT, three in SA). 15 were passengers on the Ruby Princess.
* More than 280,000 Australians have returned home in recent weeks, 6200 off 45 cruise ships.
* Virus rate of infection is between one and two - every infected person infects between one and two others.
* 50 people issued with $1000 fines in NSW during the past 24 hours.
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MEASURES
* The federal government has committed $320 billion, or 16.4 per cent of gross domestic product, to combat the virus' health and economic effects.
* A $130 billion JobKeeper scheme providing coronavirus-affected businesses $1500 a fortnight to pass onto employees over six months.
* Free child care for people still in paid work in a $1.6 billion package to childcare centres.
* A national approach has been agreed to give virus-impacted households and businesses relief on rates, water and power bills.
* The ATO will make it easier to claim working from home deductions with an 80 cents per hour flat rate for expenses from March 1 to June 30.
* All Australians must continue practising social distancing and stay at home unless going out for essentials or exercise.
* Australians returning home from overseas must be quarantined for two weeks in hotels or other accommodation before being allowed home.
* Interstate Queenslanders must present a pass and have a legitimate reason to return home
* Australians, excluding aid workers and compassionate cases, are banned from international travel.
* People risk being fined by police if caught travelling for non-essential reasons over Easter.
* Popular NSW and Queensland beaches have been closed
* Still open: supermarkets, pharmacies, banks, public transport, some schools, hairdressers, petrol stations, postal and freight services, bottle shops, newsagents, retail shops. Restaurants restricted to takeaway/delivery in most states.
* Closed: schools in Victoria and ACT, gyms, indoor sports venues, pubs, cinemas, nightclubs, casinos, places of worship, theme parks, auction houses, food courts in shopping centres, beauty therapy, tanning, waxing, nail salons, spas and tattoo parlours, galleries, museums, libraries, youth centres, community halls, clubs, RSL clubs, swimming pools, amusement parks, arcades, indoor and outdoor play centres, social sports that involve large groups, outdoor and indoor markets, outdoor playgrounds, outdoor gyms, skate parks.
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KEY QUOTE
* "These are not just numbers, these are people whose families will be missing them today," NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard, after the death of a 69-year-old-man raised the state's toll to 22.
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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
* More than 100 Australians and New Zealanders stranded on an Antarctic cruise ship off the coast of Uruguay for several weeks are set to be flown into Melbourne on Sunday.
* Three more Qantas rescue flights will bring home Australians stranded in Peru, Argentina and South Africa next week.
* Australian independent schools will be forced to open in term two after the federal government threatened to cut funding.
* 240 million people among Australia's neighbours could be forced to live off less than $9 a day as the virus hits household incomes in East Asia and the Pacific, according to UN research.
* The Australian National University will use students' year 11 results to offer them places for undergraduate degrees in 2021.
* UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, 55, is out of intensive care but remains under close observation in hospital following COVID-19 complications.
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SPORT
* The NRL competition is planned to restart on May 28
* The AFL, NRL, A-league soccer, Super Rugby and netball competitions are postponed.
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ECONOMICS
* The head of the IMF predicts the virus will trigger the worse global economic downturn since the 1930s Great Depression with only partial recovery in 2021.
* Job advertisements have been slashed by two-thirds as Australian businesses absorb the economic pain of the coronavirus.
* Housing auction clearance rates plunged from 70 per cent in February to 37.3 by March end after on-site auctions and open homes were banned.
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GLOBAL CORONAVIRUS
* Cases: at least 1,605,372
* Deaths: at least 95,753
* Recovered: at least 356,952
*Source: State and federal government updates and worldometers website at 1400 AEST
Australian Associated Press