Medical workers prepare to host patients with mild symptoms of coronavirus in Barcelona. File

Spain's death toll from the new coronavirus rose by 164 to 25,264 on Sunday, according to data from the Health Ministry, marking the lowest one-day increase since March 18.

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Europe prepares for more lockdown easing as coronavirus hopes rise

Coronavirus cases in Russia rise by record daily amount

Confirmed cases of the virus rose to 217,466 on Sunday, from 216,582 on Saturday, the ministry said.

 Spaniards took to the streets to jog, cycle and rollerskate for the first time following 48 days of confinement on Saturday as some European nations cautiously eased virus lockdowns while Russia reported a sudden surge in its infections.

Members of the Spanish Army's Military Emergency Unit talk to undertakers driving a van in Madrid. AFP

As governments weigh how to lift virus restrictions to restart economies against the risk of new outbreaks, US authorities brought some hope by approving an experimental drug for emergency use on coronavirus patients.

The decision was the latest step in a global push to find treatments and a vaccine for the coronavirus, which has left half of humanity under some form of lockdown and pushed the world economy towards its worst downturn since the Great Depression in the 1930s.

The virus has now killed more than 240,000 people worldwide, according to an AFP tally of official figures, and infected 3.3 million since it first emerged in China late last year.

With signs the pandemic is slowing in the hardest-hit nations, European countries and some parts of the US have begun to lift restrictions to try to inject life into economies crippled by weeks of closure.

From Madrid to Mallorca, Spaniards flocked to the streets as they were allowed to exercise and walk freely outside after the government eased seven weeks of strict lockdown in a country with one of the highest number of fatalities at nearly 25,000.

Agencies