In what was the British Prime Minister's first news conference since recovering from COVID-19, and a day after his fiancee gave birth, Mr Johnson offered hope to locked-down Britons, but urged them to stick with restrictions designed to slow the spread of the virus.

As bold as that statement may have been, the next step would be a cautious one, as the government is well aware at the perils of lifting restrictions too soon.

With rising unemployment and many companies crippled, the government is coming under pressure to outline an exit strategy. But an announcement is unlikely to happen before May 7.

The enormity of the economic impact across the globe is beginning to emerge and statistics released overnight are deeply troubling.

More 30 million unemployed Americans and the economy in the 19 countries using the euro shrank 3.8 per cent in the first quarter of the year.

And as if that's not depressing enough,it's believed some of those numbers already are outdated because of the lag in gathering data.

On the positive news-front, Dr Anthony Fauci, the US government's top infectious-diseases expert, said he expects federal approval for the first drug to prove effective against the coronavirus to happen "really quickly".

Meanwhile, in New Zealand where restrictions have lifted to level three, the impact has been felt ... at McDonald's.

Three Maccas in Rotorua were eaten out of stock yesterday.

McDonald's Rotorua said they would be closing their drive-throughs on Thursday afternoon, and looking to re-open at least one on Thursday evening.

In Christchurch earlier in the week, the city council even had to get traffic management involved at two McDonald's restaurants due to the demand.

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