According to German media, the federal government in Berlin wants restrictions on movement to last until at least 3 May although some shops will be able to reopen under strict rules from 20 April.
Angela Merkel held talks with cabinet ministers on Wednesday before discussing an easing of measures with Germany’s 16 states.
According to reports, shops of up to 400 sq m (4,300 sq ft) will be allowed to reopen from 20 April subject to strict conditions on the number of customers allowed in at a time. Larger stores would then be allowed to reopen from 4 May along with hairdressers.
Curbs on people’s movement are likely to remain in place up until 3 May.
Some of Germany’s states disagree on how to relax restrictions. North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, aims to reopen schools gradually starting with primary schools from the start of next week. Bavaria’s state premier, Markus Söder, believes that is too soon.
Germany’s RKI public health institute has said the number of deaths from coronavirus has risen by another 285 in the past 24 hours to 3,254, which is relatively low for a population of 83 million. It now has 127,584 positive cases.
The economy ministry said Germany fell into recession last month and is unlikely to come out of it before mid-2020.
