Australia's Canberra Extends COVID-19 Lockdown

Much of Australia's east coast has been under strict movement restrictions for weeks, hitting the local economy, and with cases still soaring, Canberra said it will remain in lockdown until at least Sept. 17.

Australia's Canberra on Tuesday extended its hard lockdown by a further two weeks as the capital city struggles to contain a surge in the highly infectious Delta variant. Much of Australia's east coast has been under strict movement restrictions for weeks, hitting the local economy, and with cases still soaring, Canberra said it will remain in lockdown until at least Sept. 17. "We are bending the curve down and are getting on top of the outbreak. However, it is a slow process and it will take more time," Australian Capital Territory Chief Minister Andrew Barr told reporters in Canberra. On Tuesday, Canberra reported 13 new cases in the past 24 hours. New South Wales reported 1,164 new infections, down slightly from a record 1,290 cases the day prior.