10 must-reads for today

China yesterday successfully launched its largest carrier rocket, which was carrying a new-generation spacecraft. It was the first mission by the Long March-5B, which was also carrying an inflatable cargo return module, CCTV reported.

Retail sales in March registered the steepest drop in 22 years as consumers in Singapore cut back on spending amid the coronavirus pandemic. More pain is in store as experts expect the circuit breaker measures to hit retailers harder over April and May.

About two-thirds of people around the world support measures that prioritise health over economy, as a new study shows that relaxing lockdowns too soon may save jobs but increase fatalities. The latest findings of the Edelman Trust Barometer challenge the notion that "lockdown fatigue" is rising among populations hit by the pandemic.

India is staging its biggest evacuation operation to allow 200,000 of its citizens who are stranded overseas due to travel restrictions amid the Covid-19 pandemic to return home.

As the pandemic-induced recession spreads, bankruptcies and layoffs will be inevitable despite support measures. Economists have offered suggestions worth looking at as trampolines to buoy the economy, says associate editor Vikram Khanna.

Couples whose plans to tie the knot were postponed by the coronavirus will be able to have their marriages solemnised remotely via live video links, after Parliament passed the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures for Solemnisation and Registration of Marriages) Bill into law yesterday.

Applications for this year's Direct School Admission (DSA) scheme, which grants Primary 6 pupils places in secondary schools before they sit the Primary School Leaving Examination, will be taken online as schools observe safe distancing measures. Schools will conduct interviews via videoconferencing from early July to mid-September.

United Overseas Bank (UOB) has approved $4 billion in loans to mid-sized firms under the Temporary Bridging Loan Programme, it said yesterday. The loans are going to clients in sectors that have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, including construction, retail and hospitality.

Tributes poured in from the netball fraternity after the death of former national vice-captain Grace Chew at age 58 on Monday. Not only was she a former national Under-21 coach but she also served as the honorary secretary of the then Singapore Netball Association, besides being a role model and mentor to young players.

American author Colson Whitehead's (above) novel The Nickel Boys, which chronicles the horrors of a reform school in Florida, has made him the fourth person to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction twice. Winners are traditionally announced at Columbia University in New York. This year, however, Pulitzer administrator Dana Canedy delivered the news in a video filmed from her living room.

From the oldest coronavirus survivor in Singapore to possibly the first baby born here with Covid-19 antibodies, here are stories of those who fought against the disease and won. str.sg/blurb355

Parents, how are you coping with the circuit breaker measures? Here are tips on how to work and manage your children at home at the same time. str.sg/blurb356