Brazil's Vale says it will receive 500k rapid coronavirus tests from China on Monday

RIO DE JANEIRO, March 27 (Reuters) - Half a million rapid coronavirus tests will arrive in Brazil on Monday, mining company Vale SA said on Friday, after receiving the first of 5 million tests from China as part of its efforts to boost testing in Brazil's healthcare system.

Vale said it planned to ship the tests by plane from China's Guangdong province on Sunday and they would arrive the following night at Guarulhos airport in Sao Paulo. The rest of the tests will arrive over the course of April, the company said in an emailed statement. Brazil has been rationing tests for only the sickest patients thought to have coronavirus due to a lack of supplies. (Reporting by Marta Nogueira; Editing by Daniel Wallis)