BAKU (Reuters) – Azerbaijan has extended partial lockdown measures to tackle an outbreak of the coronavirus until May 31 as the number of cases reached 1,854 in the country, the government said on Friday.
The government also said it would progressively begin lifting some restrictions on commercial activity starting next week, allowing shops, beauty salons and hairdressers to reopen in the capital Baku and in certain other regions.
Azerbaijan, the third largest oil producer among ex-Soviet countries after Russia and Kazakhstan, has felt the economic impact of low oil prices and an outbreak of the new coronavirus in the country.
The country of around 10 million has so far recorded 25 deaths from the virus.
(Reporting by Nailia Bagirova; Writing by Gabrielle Ttrault-Farber; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
