<span style="color: #222222;">Bars, shops and cultural spaces across France have reopened their doors as the country starts lifting restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">From Wednesday, groups of up to six people are allowed to eat together at outdoor restaurant terraces.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">France's nationwide curfew is also being pushed back from 7 PM to 9 PM Austria too has also allowed restaurants, cinemas and theatres to open for the first time in six months.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Customers with a Green Pass showing a negative test, vaccinations or recovery from an infection will now be able to take advantage of Austria's new rules.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Austria's government has also announced that travellers from certain countries with low rates of infections will no longer have to quarantine from Wednesday. They will have to provide proof of a negative test, vaccinations or a recent infection.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Most European countries appear on the approved list, although the UK and Sweden are not included.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Austria entered its second nationwide lockdown in November after reporting record numbers of daily infections. Fewer than 600 new cases were reported on Tuesday, down from a peak of 9,586 on 12th November.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Following months of closures, Wednesday's easing of restrictions means that along with restaurants, cafes and non-essential shops, cinemas, theatres, museums and sports venues  can also welcome customers. Some medical experts in the country had raised concerns about the number of new daily cases of  COVID-19 , which now average about 13,000.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">But that figure is far lower than the peaks of more than 40,000 daily cases recorded as recently as last month.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">France's vaccination campaign has also been accelerating in recent weeks, with more than 20 million people now having received at least one dose, and almost nine million having received both.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">The government had set a target of vaccinating 20 million people with a first dose of the jab by mid-May.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Following months of closures, Wednesday's easing of restrictions means that along with restaurants, cafes and non-essential shops, cinemas, theatres, museums and sports venues will also be welcoming customers.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">As part of France's phased reopening, some restrictions for businesses will still remain in place.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">While bars and restaurants can open to the public, they will not be permitted to offer seating indoors and must not exceed more than 50% of their usual capacity. Venues such as cinemas and theatres will have to stick to 35% capacity and a maximum of 800 people.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said the move to partially reopen businesses was a symbolic step in the country's economic recovery.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">France began easing restrictions on 3rd May. Under government plans, the night-time curfew is set to be lifted completely at the end of June.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">According to the data John Hopkins University, France has recorded more than 5.9 million cases of coronavirus and 108,201 deaths due to COVID since the pandemic started<b>.</b></span><br />''