Austria will tighten its coronavirus-related lockdown after the case soared to the highest level last week.
Starting November 17 to December 7, a full lockdown similar to the one in March will commence, replacing the partial lockdown starting November 3, which is deemed ineffective.
All businesses, excluding essential services, would be closed. The general public will only be able to go out on necessary travels such as for groceries or healthcare. Working from home is strongly advised.
The stricter lockdown is spurred by the new record high of infections on November 13, at 10,368 cases. Since the night-time curfew was imposed, new cases jumped close to an average of 7,000, up from about 1,000 in the first week of October and 300 in early September.
On a related note, during the country’s first strict lockdown in March, gasoline demand slumped by 29% to 25,000 bpd, from 35,000 bpd in the previous month. In April, it plunged by a further 36% to 16,000 bpd. Gasoil demand also slipped by 6% to 162,000 bpd compared to February’s 172,000 bpd, and by a further 13% in April to 141,000 bpd.
The current lockdown is also seen to dampen transport fuel demand for Austria.
