The latest news from around the U.S. and the world on coronavirus:

Woman in California dies, marking 50 deaths so far in U.S.

The U.S. now has 50 coronavirus deaths, and cases in all but one state.

California’s sixth death from the disease, reported south of San Francisco, put the nation at 50 deaths overall. Santa Clara County officials reported Friday that a woman in her 80s died from COVID-19.

Most deaths have occurred in Washington state, which reported six more on Friday, bringing its total to 37. Florida, New Jersey, South Dakota, Georgia, Kansas and Colorado also have reported deaths.

Also Friday, Alabama, Idaho and Montana reported their first coronavirus cases. That leaves West Virginia as the only state with no cases confirmed.

President Trump says he will likely take coronavirus test

President Trump has said he is likely to take a test for the coronavirus after all.

Trump over the weekend was near Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s communications director, Fábio Wajngarten, who tested positive for the virus just days later.

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement Thursday that “both the President and Vice President had almost no interactions with the individual who tested positive and do not require being tested at this time.”

Trump was asked at a press conference Friday if he was being selfish by not undergoing testing, prompting Trump to reply: “I didn’t say I wasn’t going to be tested.”

“Most likely, yeah,” Trump added while downplaying his interaction with the Brazilian official at this resort in Florida. “Not for that reason, but because I think I will do it anyway. Fairly soon, we’re working out a schedule.”

Trump says top cruise ship companies stopping trips from U.S.

WASHINGTON — President Trump tweeted on Friday that four major cruise ship companies have agreed to suspend trips from the U.S. for 30 days, effective at midnight.

Trump said that Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian and MSC Cruises all agreed to the suspensions. He said the cruise line industry is a “great and important industry – it will be kept that way!”

The U.S. State Department advised Sunday against any travel on cruise ships, particularly for those with underlying health conditions. The advisory said the CDC has noted an “increased risk of infection of COVID-19 in a cruise ship environment.”

Virus cases ramping up in Africa, which is racing to prepare

DAKAR, Senegal — Cases of the new coronavirus are ramping up in Africa, with six new countries announcing confirmed infections in the past 24 hours.

Across Africa, 18 of the continent’s 54 countries have now registered COVID-19 cases. The majority of these cases are imported, authorities say.

On Friday, Kenya, Guinea and Ethiopia reported their first cases, while Gabon and Ghana did so late Thursday. Sudan also reported its first case, a person who had already died.

Experts warn that on the booming continent of more than 1.3 billion people, containment is key as Africa’s already strained health systems could likely lead to a higher mortality rate and deeper crisis that would have global impact.

Louisiana will delay April 4 primary

Louisiana’s chief elections officer asked the governor on Friday to postpone the state’s April presidential primary election for two months because of the new coronavirus, as the number of residents who tested positive continued to grow.

Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin started the process for delaying the April 4 primary with an emergency certification to Gov. John Bel Edwards. Ardoin asked for a new June 20 primary date. Edwards was expected to agree to the request, making Louisiana the first state to push back its election because of the virus.

Early voting in Louisiana’s election was scheduled to start in a week. But with a large number of elderly poll workers and worldwide concerns about people gathering in groups, Ardoin’s office said it didn’t feel comfortable continuing with the election plans.

As of Friday, the number of residents testing positive in the state had jumped to 33, centered largely in the New Orleans area, according to the state health department’s latest figures. The positive tests are awaiting confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Trump preparing to invoke emergency powers over coronavirus

WASHINGTON  — President Trump is preparing to invoke emergency powers as the country struggles to contain the coronavirus outbreak, according to two people familiar with the planning who spoke on condition of anonymity.

It was still unclear Friday, however, precisely what mechanism Trump would use to free up additional federal resources for testing and treatment as well as help those struggling with the economic impact.

Trump is poised to speak at 3 p.m. at the White House. “Topic: CoronaVirus!” he tweeted.

The move comes as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Trump administration are laboring to finish a coronavirus aid package Friday that would fast-track federal aid to anxious Americans and calm teetering financial markets amid the global crisis.

Read more about the president’s plan to invoke emergency powers here.

Canada’s House of Commons shuts down for 5 weeks

Canada’s House of Commons voted Friday to shut down for at least five weeks to help ensure lawmakers do not contribute to the spread of for new coronavirus.

The moves comes after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s wife tested positive. The prime minister himself has been in self-imposed quarantine.

Trudeau says his government will likely recommend that Canadians avoid travel outside the country except for essential purposes.

Trudeau is spending the day in briefings, phone calls and virtual meetings from home. He spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday.

An Australian official who tested positive for coronavirus met Barr, Ivanka Trump

Australian Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton is in isolation at a hospital after testing positive for the coronavirus. He returned to Australia on Sunday from Washington, D.C., where he met U.S. Attorney General William Barr and President Trump’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, last week.

Dutton also attended a conference with other representatives of the Five Eyes intelligence network, which includes the U.S., Canada, Britain, Australia and New Zealand.

Dutton said Friday he was in isolation in a hospital after confirmation he has the virus.

Australian authorities have stepped up their response to the outbreak by recommending people avoid nonessential gatherings of 500 or more and to reconsider all international travel.

Australia has more than 120 confirmed cases. It is mild to moderate for most people but can be severe in older adults and those with existing health problems.

Yesterday ?? Home Affairs @PeterDutton_MP joins @IvankaTrump, Attorney General Barr & our five eyes partners ???????? to fight online child exploitation. We heard from 9 brave survivors & announced principles that technology companies should implement to protect children online pic.twitter.com/3ifeJnGJPI

— Australian Embassy, USA ???? (@AusintheUS) March 6, 2020

Canadians advised not to leave the country

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government will likely recommend that Canadians avoid travel outside the country except for essential purposes.

The prime minister, who is quarantining himself at home after his wife tested positive for the new coronavirus, will address the nation later Friday.

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau fell ill after returning from Britain. The couple have three children, but Trudeau’s wife is the only member of the family with symptoms, the prime minister’s office said.

Trudeau himself as not been tested because he is not showing symptoms, his office said.

Trudeau said “we are going to be able to get through this if everyone is going to follow the advice of our medical professionals and experts.”

Trudeau is spending the day in briefings, phone calls and virtual meetings from home. He spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday.

German asks for military help

Germany’s hardest-hit county, Heinsberg on the western border with the Netherlands, has requested help from the country’s military to bolster its laboratory capacity and speed up testing.

Heinsberg has recorded 553 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, or about a quarter of the country’s total.

Asked whether the military would consider calling up reservists, Arne Collatz, a defense ministry spokesman, said that this was a possibility but added that “we are far away from that.”

Meanwhile, the German military has purchased 300,000 protective masks and goggles for 126 million euros as part of the government’s effort to procure urgently needed medical material.

U.S. defense department closes schools on military bases in Europe

The U.S. Department of Defense says it’s temporarily shutting down all schools on continental European military facilities as a precaution against the spread of the COVID-19 virus, affecting tens of thousands of students.

Department of Defense Schools spokesman Stephen Smith told The Associated Press on Friday the closures as of Monday would affect 63 elementary, middle and high schools in Germany, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands, and likely Ankara, Turkey.

Three schools in Britain will remain open for the time being, he said.

In all, some 27,000 students attend the Defense Department schools in Europe, Smith said. Schools in Italy, and also Bahrain, have already been closed down.

The schools will be closed through the April break and then the situation will be reassessed, he said.

Starting next week, a distance learning plan, already in use for the students in Italy and Bahrain, will be implemented in Europe.

France pledges to compensate losses from virus

France’s government is promising to compensate virus-related salary losses for “99%” of workers, as travel bans, school closures and other measures take a heavy toll on the economy.

It’s part of tens of billions of euros the government says it will stump up to support the economy, as French financial markets plunge and companies curb activity to try to stem the spread of the virus.

“Nobody with a job will lose a cent,” Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on BFM television Friday. “OK, for the highest salaries we might think of putting a limit on compensation, but we will provide for 99 % of employees” who see wage losses linked to virus containment measures.

He also loan guarantees to small and medium businesses struggling because of the virus.

“We will do whatever is necessary to support our economy and even more. How much will it cost ? Tens of billions of euros.”

France has more than 2,800 confirmed cases, including 61 deaths.

Spain orders 1st mandatory lockdown for 60,000

Spain’s has ordered its first mandatory lockdown, confining over 60,000 people to four towns as infections for the new coronavirus increase sharply.

The rise is straining health services and putting more pressure on the government to act faster to fight the pandemic.

The country had more than 3,800 cases by Friday morning and at least 84 deaths. The Spanish capital, Madrid, has nearly 2,000 cases alone, many linked to nursing homes.

The government has closed museums and sports centers, sent home nearly 10 million students, asked people to work remotely and limited crowds at public events in high risk areas. But questions are rising whether the measures are enough.

Madrid’s vice president said Friday that the region is in dire need of medical supplies, despite announcing an unprecedented plan to pool intensive care units from both public and private hospitals and to use hotel rooms for medical needs.

Germany begins to close down schools

German states are beginning to close down schools as a precautionary measure to protect against the spread of the coronavirus.

The southern state of Bavaria, western state of Saarland and city-state of Berlin all announced measures on Friday, and others were expected to later in the day.

Bavarian Gov. Markus Soeder also said the state is implementing strict restrictions on visits to hospitals, retirement homes and other facilities where people may be particularly vulnerable.

He says he’s convinced Germany will weather the crisis, but that the success of government efforts would depend greatly upon “social cohesion” from citizens.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government and state governors late Thursday agreed on other measures to prepare for further infections, including asking hospitals to postpone any non-essential operations or other procedures to keep beds and facilities free for coronavirus patients.

China reports just 8 new cases

Chinese President Xi Jinping has told the U.N. that his nation wants to conduct joint research on drugs and vaccines and offer “as much assistance as it can” to countries where the novel coronavirus is spreading.

State media reported Friday that Xi told U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres by phone that economic and daily life are gradually returning to normal in China thanks to “arduous endeavors” at prevention and control.

Xi was quoted as saying: “The Chinese people will definitely prevail over the COVID-19 epidemic and will also definitely realize its intended targets for economic and social development.”

He was also quoted as saying that the Chinese people’s “hard work has won precious time for and made important contributions to other countries’ epidemic prevention and control.”

China, where the virus was first discovered, recorded just eight new infections on Friday.

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