BRASILIA - Brazil registered a record number of new cases of the novel coronavirus on Wednesday , surpassing France's tally to become the sixth-worst hit country, as the disease sends the economy toward its worst year since at least 1900.
Early on Wednesday, France revised its total number of confirmed and suspected cases down 0.3 per cent to 177,700. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has locked horns with state governors for weeks over the lockdowns, saying they are causing more damage through lost jobs than the disease itself. The ministry estimates every additional week of quarantine measures costs the economy 20 billion reais .He escalated the fight this week by declaring gyms and beauty salons as"essential" services that can open for business, threatening legal action against local governments that don't comply.