China has said that nationals from eight countries are banned from entering its territory as Europe grapples with a rise in COVID-19 infections. In France, one famous Paris landmark is appealing for help from customers.

Asia 

China has temporarily banned the entry of foreigners from at least eight countries as COVID-19 cases rise in Europe and elsewhere.

Citizens from Russia, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Philippines, India, and Bangladesh can no longer enter the country — even if they hold a valid visa or residence permit for China.

Health authorities on Friday reported 30 imported cases in the most recent 24-hour period, including 15 in Shanghai. That brought the total number of imported cases during the pandemic to 3,510.

Vietnam has pursued an aggressive anti-COVID strategy that includes mass testing, military-run quarantine centers, and early border closures.

On Friday, its coronavirus task force said it would stick with that containment method, which has seen just 35 people die from the virus there.

Its tally of infections is just 1,210 cases and officials say there have been two months without community transmission.

Australia's highest court dismissed a lawsuit from billionaire businessman Clive Palmer (below), who argued Western Australia's state-border closure to non-essential travel was unconstitutional.

Seven judges ruled that the measure was proportionate as it applied during "a hazard in the nature of a plague of epidemic."

The state closed its frontier to the rest of the country on April 5.

Sport in Sri Lanka has been disrupted once more by the pandemic. Cricket officials have delayed the Lankan Premier League tournament for a third time amid a surge in infections.

The 23-match league has been postponed by six days until November 27th. It is set to feature cricket legends such as West Indian superstars Chris Gayle (below) and Carlos Braithwaite.

Europe

Europe, too, is grappling with a surge in infections. Several countries reported on Friday an uptick in the number of coronavirus cases.

Businesses across the continent have taken a hit from a slump in demand. In France, Shakespeare and Company, the iconic Paris bookstore that published James Joyce's "Ulysses" in 1922, is appealing to readers for support after pandemic-linked losses put the future of the iconic Left Bank institution in doubt.

The English-language bookshop on the Seine River sent an email to customers last week to inform them that it was facing "hard times" and to encourage them to buy a book.

Since then, the owners have been "overwhelmed" by the offers of help Shakespeare and Company has received. There have been a record-breaking 5,000 online orders in one week, compared with around 100 in a normal week — representing a 50-fold increase.

Germany reported more than 20,000 new infections with the novel coronavirus over a single day for the first time, the official disease control institute reported on Friday. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) said that reports had come in from the regional health authorities of 21,506 infections over a 24-hour period, up from 18,681 a week ago. On Thursday, the RKI reported 19,990 new infections, a record since the pandemic began.

Hungary's medical system is under strain, according to Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

He said on Friday that some medical operations might need to be rescheduled as hospital beds are filling up COVID-19 patients.

Based on current predictions, Orban said, Hungary will need 2,240 intensive beds with ventilators for patients by November 21, and 4,480 intensive beds by December 10.

"This is around the limit of our capacities... as this implies 30,000 to 32,000 coronavirus patients on hospital beds," Orban told state radio.

Meanwhile, swathes of Italy return to coronavirus lockdown Friday.

Five coronavirus "red zones" in Italy's north — plus Calabria in the country's "toe" — will shutter non-essential businesses, affecting 16 million people.

Russia said it has hit a record high of 20,582 new cases, including 6,253 infections in Moscow, bringing the national tally to 1,733,440.

Authorities also reported 378 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours, pushing the official death toll to 29,887.

The Czech Republic reported 13,231 new coronavirus cases for November 5, bringing the total tally in the country since the pandemic started to 391,945, health ministry data showed on Friday.