Austria's Chancellor Sebastian Kurz attends a news conference, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Vienna, Austria October 29, 2020. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
VIENNA: Austria's daily coronavirus infections jumped by more than a quarter to a new record on Friday, nearing the level at which the government says hospitals will be stretched beyond capacity, as it works on new restrictions to stem the surge.
Friday's official tally of 5,627 was a jump from Thursday's 4,453, itself a record high, suggesting the conservative-led government is running out of time to bring the numbers under control. The peak of the first wave in March was 1,050.
Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said on Thursday that hospitals would be stretched beyond capacity at around 6,000 daily infections.
Kurz, who has repeatedly said an economically damaging second lockdown would be a last resort, is scheduled to announce new restrictions on Saturday.
Austria's current anti-coronavirus measures are relatively loose - restaurants and theatres remain open in the country of almost 9 million.
"The dramatically rising infection numbers in Austria and many European countries will require restrictions on public life and also affect the domestic economy," the Finance Ministry said in a statement, adding that it was working on additional economic aid measures.
The government has a 50 billion euro ($59.1 billion) package of measures in place for this year and next, roughly half of which has been disbursed or approved for payment, Finance Ministry figures from this month show.
It has not spelled out the new measures but said its focus was on saving jobs and ensuring the "survival" of companies.
Austria was quick to introduce a national lockdown during its first wave of infections but it has held off on similar action this time, at least partly for fear of hurting the economy.
