New Zealand defers lockdown decision as it reports new COVID-19 cases

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Friday deferred a decision on whether to ease a lockdown on the city of Auckland as 11 new coronavirus infections were reported, including nine cases of community transmission. New Zealand’s biggest city was placed in lockdown earlier this month until Aug. 26 amid a spike in new cases, forcing businesses to close and schools to shut. Ardern said after a review of the lockdown that there was no need to change any settings at this stage, and promised to review them again on Monday. “We have made good progress. Unlike our first lockdown we are not dealing with multiple outbreaks,” she said at a news conference. “There is nothing to suggest we need change our course and certainly nothing that suggests that we need to escalate our response.”