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Brazil’s Health Ministry reported 15,654 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, bringing the country’s total to 707,412.?
Brazil also confirmed 679 new Covid-19 fatalities Monday, bringing the country’s total deaths to 37,134.
The ministry on Monday reverted to providing cumulative data on Covid-19 cases and deaths after saying over the weekend that it would no longer provide comprehensive data.?However, the ministry said the methodology and data would only be available on the website on Tuesday.
On Saturday, an official Covid-19 tracker from the?Brazilian Health Ministry began showing only data on new cases and deaths recorded in the past 24 hours, eliminating running cumulative totals of virus deaths and cases that had previously appeared on the same page. The government faced widespread backlash for its decision.
Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro?tweeted Saturday, “Cumulative data, in addition to not showing that the large part [of patients] no longer has the illness, does not depict the moment of the country. Other actions are in the works to improve case notifications and diagnostic confirmations.”
Both the number of new cases and deaths reported on Monday were lower than the previous day but?Brazil nonetheless has the second highest number of coronavirus cases worldwide and the third highest number of reported deaths.?
Millions of N95 respirator masks have been certified and will soon be shipped to California, according to a statement from Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The masks were part of a somewhat secretive deal made between the state and BYD during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. BYD, an electric car-maker based in China, stands for Build Your Dreams.?
The contract calls for 150 million N95 masks. The masks were held up pending certification from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
A genetic study suggests the new coronavirus was carried into California several times by travelers,?and suggests the state missed several opportunities to use contact tracing to stop further spread.
The report, published in the journal Science, also strongly indicates that at least one large cruise ship outbreak started with a virus transmitted by a single person infected with a strain of the virus that spread in Washington state early in the pandemic.
It’s a small analysis, but helps paint a picture of how a few cases can turn into a pandemic — and how quick action can stop the spread, said Dr. Charles Chiu, a professor of laboratory medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, who led the study team.
For instance, the outbreak that infected more than 700 people with coronavirus on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in February of this year, killing nine of them, almost certainly started with a single case, Chiu said.?
“Probably one passenger brought it on board,” Chiu told CNN.
The strain that infected the passengers and crew on two voyages of the liner was the same strain that circulated widely in Washington state and elsewhere, Chiu added.
In contrast, another outbreak stopped with three people. One patient in Solano County infected two health care workers who cared for her, and transmission stopped there.
“That was it. It was an outbreak of three individuals,” Chiu said.?
In that case, contact tracing and quick isolation of the new cases stopped any further spread, the researchers said.?
The findings, he said, show many missed opportunities to stop the virus when it was seeded multiple times into California.?“We simply did not have the infrastructure to do the detecting that would have been needed,” Chiu said. The findings also show that travel restrictions can work if they are started early enough and observed carefully.?
North Carolina released health guidance for schools to reopen to students, but as North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper in an afternoon news conference said, “opening schools will depend on our health metrics.”
“We very much want to open the school building, but we won’t open and make a reckless decision when it’s so important,” he said.
Cooper said this year would be different from any other.
“Students and staff will be screened for illness before they enter the school. Children will be asked to stay distant from classmates.?They won’t be sharing pencils or textbooks and there will be a lot of cleaning,” he said.
The Nicaraguan Citizens’ Covid-19 Observatory,?an independent network that includes health care professionals who are tallying coronavirus cases,?reported nearly five times more cases in the country than the government’s tally, according to numbers released by the Observatory Saturday.
Nicaragua’s government reported?1,118 cases and 46 deaths from the novel coronavirus on June 2.?The Citizens’ Observatory has in turn reported 5,027 suspected coronavirus cases and 1,015 Covid-19 deaths.
The Observatory also reported 458 health workers with Covid-19 symptoms and 48 deaths suspected from the virus among health care personnel.
The Nicaraguan government maintains its position of not issuing confinement measures nor shutting the economy, arguing that 40% of the population lives in the countryside and 80% of the urban population are self-employed.
In statements to official media on June 5, Nicaragua’s Vice President Rosario Murillo announced at least 2,000 activities of the Family Economy program, which includes markets and food sales, would still take place this weekend.?
Yosemite National Park will reopen to the public on Thursday, allowing 50% of its average visitors.
The park is beginning a phased reopening that starts by allowing 1,700 vehicle passes each day, according a statement from park spokesperson Jamie Richards.
Los Angeles County is actively reviewing state guidance on reopening more sectors of the economy, including film and television production, sporting events, and theme parks.
The state guidelines permit reopening on Friday. L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger promised an announcement on what Los Angeles will allow prior to that.
Los Angeles County has recorded a total of 64,644 confirmed coronavirus cases, and more than 2,600 deaths.?
In the wake of large crowds protesting throughout the county, Health Director Barbara Ferrer is urging all residents to move about under the assumption they are infected and do what they can not to spread the virus.
While states?lift more restrictions?and more Americans go out to socialize or?protest, almost half of US states are seeing higher rates of new coronavirus cases.
But the situation would have been much worse had states not shut down,?a new study?says.
More than 1.9 million Americans have been infected, and?more than 110,000 have died?in just over four months, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Some states are seeing increases: Nationwide, 22 states are seeing upward trends in coronavirus cases. About 20 states have seen decreases in recent days, and eight states are holding steady.
One of the states with the biggest spikes in new cases is Florida. The number of new cases reported each day has increased an average of roughly?46% over the past week, just as?most of the state entered a second phase of reopening.
While big cities on the coasts were hit hard early in the pandemic, the?past few weeks have seen wider spread in inland states, including Arkansas, Texas and Arizona.
In Utah, state Rep. Suzanne Harrison called a recent spike of cases “very concerning (and) approaching exponential.”
“Today’s 18.5% positive test rate is double yesterday’s (9.4%),” she?tweeted?over the weekend.
Friday, health officials in Utah said they were “very concerned” about the rise in new cases over the past week.
The state has recorded more than 12,000 infections, according to Johns Hopkins.
Track the virus in your state and across the US here.
US stocks rallied on Monday, pushed higher by the momentum that already got the market going last week. Investors are excited about the gradual reopening of the economy and a Friday jobs report that was much better than expected.
Here’s where the markets finished up today:
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont announced Monday that he is ordering an independent review of the response to the Covid-19 pandemic by state nursing homes.
The review will be conducted by a third party and will incorporate a “top-to-bottom analysis of all elements of the pandemic and how it was addressed in these facilities.”
The governor said that he wants the review completed by the fall in order to be prepared for a possible second wave of coronavirus.
North Carolina Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. Mandy Cohen said today, “The percent of tests that are positive” for the state “is now among the highest in the nation.”
She continued: “I am concerned. These trends moving in the wrong direction is a signal we need to take very seriously.”
Here are the numbers: There have been 36,484 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the state. At least 938 new cases have been reported today, 739 people are hospitalized and 1,006 people are dead, according to North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper.
Today marks the highest day of people hospitalized for Covid-19 since the pandemic began, Cooper said. On Saturday, North Carolina had the highest day of new cases —?with 1,370. North Carolina is also seeing more viral spread of Covid-19.?
Cooper said Dr. Deborah Birx of the White House Coronavirus Task Force contacted Dr. Cohen on Friday with her concerns.
Major League Baseball is proposing a 76-game season in the league’s latest idea to save the 2020 season, per ESPN. The report details the latest proposal by the owners sent to the players union Monday morning.
ESPN, citing an unnamed source familiar with the negotiations, says in addition to a shortened season, the players would receive 75% of their prorated salaries. Last week, the league reportedly rejected a Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) proposal which offered a 114-game season with players receiving their full prorated salaries. In a statement on June 4, MLBPA Director Tony Clark said the players would resoundingly reject any proposals that asked for further reductions in salaries.
Neither MLB or MLBPA have responded to CNN’s request for details or comment.
Some context: In May, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred appeared on CNN and expressed hope that a new season could be salvaged.?
When asked about the economic impact if there was no MLB baseball this season, Manfred told CNN that losses would be?“devastating”?and would result in losses approaching $4 billion.
Hear more:
Cuba?has gone nine days without a coronavirus death as of Monday, Dr. Francisco Durán, national director of epidemiology at?Cuba’s Ministry for Public Health, said at a news conference.
He also said there were only nine new cases of coronavirus in the past 24 hours.
Over the weekend,?Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said the virus was “under control” in?Cuba?and the government would soon announce measures to gradually reopen the island.
Since the outbreak,?Cuban officials have ended nearly all international travel to and from the island, made wearing a face mask in public mandatory and have required everyone ill with the coronavirus to quarantine at government-run hospitals.
Cuba?has a total of 2,200 cases of coronavirus and a total of 83 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said he and family members took part in two protests this weekend, and plans to soon be tested for coronavirus.
“To say that black lives matter, that systemic racism must be relegated to history, and we must use this time to transform our society and ourselves so that we finally live up to our nation’s highest ideals,” he said.
The governor said he was “honored” to walk alongside community leaders and residents in Hillside, and urged those protesting across the state to be tested for coronavirus.
Murphy said he and the first lady of New Jersey have scheduled their tests.
Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez said that the county will open its beaches no later than Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters at the National Hurricane Center Monday, he said there is a good possibility that the curfew will be lifted tonight, and that they need a little time to prepare to open the beaches.?
Beaches were closed in March and were expected to open today. However, the closure was extended due to the curfew implemented May 30 during the protests over the death of George Floyd.
Canada announced Monday that it would relax some border restrictions for immediate family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents, including some who have been trying to enter from the United States.
Despite the change, a 14-day mandatory quarantine for anyone entering the country remains in place.?
Trudeau acknowledged that this has been a hard time for some families kept apart because of the pandemic.?
“This is an incredibly difficult time to be apart from a spouse, a child, or mom or dad,” Trudeau said.?
Nonessential travel into Canada is currently restricted, and that includes travel across the US-Canada border.?
That mutual border agreement is set to expire June 21 but Trudeau has indicated that “stronger measures” to contain the virus might be needed even if the border reopens to discretionary travel.?
The World Bank predicts global economic growth this year will shrink the most since World War II?due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Economists at the World Bank say?Covid-19 has?triggered the deepest recession in decades.?They?expect the global economy in 2020 to shrink 5.2% — nearly three times as steep as the global recession in 2009.
In its more than 200-page report?on the global economy,?the World Bank said it envisions a moderate recovery of 4.2% in 2021.?However,?it also said an “even worst scenario is possible”?if the health crisis?takes longer than expected to bring under control.
The World Bank also?said the pandemic is taking a heavy human and economic toll on the poorest countries,?and that?“those already in extreme poverty could descend further into destitution.”
There are at least?1,950,023?cases of coronavirus in the US, and?at least?110,689?people have died, according to Johns Hopkins University’s tally of cases in the United States.
The totals includes cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases.?
On Monday, Johns Hopkins has reported?7,660?new cases and?175?reported deaths.?
The National Bureau of Economic Research?declared?Monday that the coronavirus recession began in February.
The economy collapsed so rapidly that NBER wasted no time in announcing a recession, a stark contrast to previous downturns when the body took a year to declare what most people already knew.
Social distancing requirements imposed to fight the pandemic have crushed broad swaths of the US economy, from airlines and cruise ships to restaurants and Broadway shows.
More than 42 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits. Major companies including JCPenney, J.Crew and Hertz have filed for bankruptcy. And economists are predicting GDP imploded at an annualized rate of 40% during the second quarter.
The pandemic marked an end to the mediocre but long recovery from the Great Recession. In July 2019, that expansion officially became the longest period of uninterrupted growth in US history dating back to 1854. It spanned 128 months, easily breaking the prior record of 120 months set between March 1991 and March 2001 during the dotcom boom.
Coronavirus is in retreat across the United Kingdom, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Monday.
He said the government’s scientific advisers estimate the virus reproductive rate is currently below one in all regions.
However, Hancock warned that where there are individual “flare ups and outbreaks” the government will take local action.
“The epidemic in care homes is coming under control… the latest figures shows an almost 50% fall in the number of new care homes reporting an outbreak,” Hancock said.
No Covid-19-related deaths were recorded in London hospitals or across Scotland on Sunday, he said.
However, although Sunday’s official UK death toll of 55 was the lowest daily rise since lockdown began on March 23, the figures do tend to be lower at weekends because of delays in reporting, Hancock cautioned.
Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said more than 1,000 people have turned out for testing after they first reported an outbreak in Winooski Friday.?As of last night, there are a total of 62 cases that are believed to be associated with the outbreak — 48 Winooski residents, nine Burlington residents, and five people from other towns in Chittendon County tested positive for coronavirus, Levine said.
Of the cases, 38 are adults and 24 are children, Levine said.
“The age range is from 1 to 64 with a median age of 21,” Levine said, adding that there have no reports of hospitalizations and no deaths associated with this outbreak.
The state is experiencing an overall uptick in cases but the positivity rate remains low, Levine said. There are 1,075 cases of coronavirus in Vermont, at least 895 people have recovered, and the death total, which hasn’t changed in several weeks, is 55.?
The health department epidemiology team is working to determine whether the cases in Burlington are linked to the Winooski cases, or if there is the possibility of unrelated transmission in Burlington. They will continue to offer testing every day in Winooski and Burlington and Levine says he expects the number of cases to rise over the coming days.
Levine said that many of the people who tested positive did not know they were affected and about one in five people reported they have symptoms. This could be because they were told very early on and haven’t had symptoms yet or it could mean they are asymptomatic, Levine said.?
Israel will “hit the emergency brake” on its reopening plans as the number of coronavirus cases rises sharply, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday during a meeting of the coronavirus cabinet.
“There has been a very steep increase in morbidity. It could be that we are already seeing the doubling of the rate of infection within ten days. I very much hope not, ” Netanyahu said during the meeting.
For the past eight days, Israel has seen approximately 100 new infections a day, up from approximately 20 new infections a day a week earlier.
According to the Ministry of Health, 298 people have now died as a result of coronavirus in Israel.
Netanyahu said that Israel would freeze further reopening measures that were supposed to take place in the coming days, reevaluating the situation in one week.
Though schools, malls, and restaurants reopened under certain health restrictions, the resumption of train service and the reopening of theaters, music halls, and other cultural venues will now be delayed.
As massive protests over George Floyd’s killing continue all across New York City as the coronavirus pandemic persists, Gov. Andrew Cuomo urged protesters to get tested.
He announced that 15 testing sites around New York City will prioritize testing for protesters.
Cuomo reminded people that one person is capable of spreading the virus to dozens of people. “We’ve seen it,” he said.
New York City will perform 35,000 tests a day and monitor the data for any signs of a spike, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Monday.
Cuomo asked all protesters to get a Covid-19 test, highlighting 15 testing sites around NYC that are prioritized just for protesters.?
The Governor said there are more than 240 testing sites in New York City. The city entered phase one of reopening today.
WATCH GOV. CUOMO:
Sunday marked the most Covid-19 cases reported to the World Health Organization in a single day so far during the coronavirus pandemic, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a media briefing in Geneva on Monday.
“Most countries in the African region are still experiencing an increase in the number of Covid-19 cases, with some reporting cases in new geographic areas, although most countries in the region have less than 1,000 cases,” Tedros said.?
“We also see increasing numbers of Covid-19?cases in parts of Eastern Europe and central Asia,” Tedros said, although the situation in Europe overall has been improving.
Tedros added, “At the same time, we’re encouraged that several countries around the world are seeing very positive signs.”
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that the number of people testing positive for coronavirus in the state is down to its lowest number since March.
The governor said that on Sunday, the state performed 58,054 tests across the state and only 1.2% — or 702 people — came back positive.
This low percentage has followed a trend over the past few days, the governor said.
The governor added that these numbers indicate that the state can continue to move forward with reopening.
?WATCH:
The World Health Organization supports the current movement against racial injustice and encourages all protesters to wear masks during demonstrations, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a media briefing in Geneva on Monday.
“WHO fully supports equality and the global movement against racism. We reject discrimination of all kinds,” Tedros said on Monday.
“We encourage all those protesting around the world to do so safely,” Tedros said.
Tedros’ shared safety and precaution guidelines for protestors:
Tedros added that countries where protests have been held should strengthen testing efforts and the tracking of potential Covid-19 cases.
“We also encourage countries to strengthen the fundamental public health measures that remain the basis of the response: Find, isolate, test and care for every case, and trace and quarantine every contact,” Tedros said. “Contact tracing remains an essential element of the response.”
Prior to his daily news conference, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo rode New York City’s subway to mark the city’s reopening today under phase one.
Dani Lever, the governor’s communications director, tweeted a photo of the governor riding the city’s subway.
Once the epicenter of the pandemic as the largest and densest city in the US, New York City is?now allowing nonessential workers in construction and manufacturing to go back to work and retail stores to set up curbside or in-store pickup.
Read the tweet:
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said today marks 100 days since the first known coronavirus case in the state.
Cuomo said that at the start of the pandemic in the state, experts said how the virus progressed would largely depend on what residents did to stop the spread. He applauded New Yorkers’ efforts to flatten the curve.
“When things are tough, New Yorkers are tougher,” Cuomo said.
WATCH GOV. CUOMO:
In the past week, the number of daily Covid-19 cases in Florida has been greater than 1,200 for 5 of the past 6 days, according to the latest data from the Florida Department of Health (FLDOH).?
An analysis of the data shows, however, that the percentage of positive cases has been dropping in the last week and an increasing number of test results have been posted.?
Here’s what the data showed:
For further context, from Thursday to Saturday, the latest three days of data available, more than 130,000 test results were posted by the FLDOH and 3,755 returned positive.
In a new op-ed published in The New York Times on Monday, University of Pennsylvania professors Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel and Dr. Paul Offit pose the concern that President Trump could push for the release of a Covid-19 vaccine prematurely in order to boost his campaign for the upcoming presidential election in November.
They went on to describe how there are 123 candidate Covid-19 vaccines in development around the world and 10 are currently in human trials.
In the United States, the federal government’s “Operation Warp Speed” vaccine program aims to have a vaccine ready by the end of the year.
As the race for a vaccine continues, “the F.D.A. must require more than the production of antibodies to approve a vaccine, even for an emergency authorization, much less licensing. Only when the independent data safety and monitoring board composed of physicians, researchers and biostatisticians reviews the accumulated trial data to assess the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines, should the F.D.A. be allowed to decide on approval,” Emanuel and Offit wrote.
“Thousands of Americans have already died as Donald Trump has perpetually postponed effective public health interventions and made poor therapeutic recommendations,” Emanuel and Offit wrote. “We must be on alert to prevent him from corrupting the rigorous assessment of safety and effectiveness of Covid-19 vaccines in order to pull an October vaccine surprise to try to win re-election,” they continued.
The Pentagon announced Monday that it had lifted travel restrictions on 44 destinations which had been placed to limit the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
The 44 locations include 39 US states and five countries: Bahrain, Belgium, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom.?
The Pentagon said in a statement that these?locations “meet the conditions to lift travel restrictions, subject to the assessment of conditions at individual military installations within these areas.
These criteria include:
Some states that have not yet met the criteria for the lifting of travel restrictions include California, Florida and North Carolina.
Here is the full list of destinations where travel restrictions will be lifted, according to the Pentagon:
At least 18 people who work in Guatemala’s Presidential House have tested positive for coronavirus, according to President Alejandro Giammattei who spoke in a televised address Sunday night.
Giammattei said both he and Vice President Guillermo Castillo have been tested for the virus, and both results came back negative.
Officials are still planning to limit access to the Presidential House for 72 hours, and?all the workers at the Presidential House will be tested, he added.
The president also said he and his vice president will be working remotely.
Guatemala has at least 7,055 confirmed coronavirus cases and 252 deaths, according to John Hopkins University tally.
When asked about the impact of recent New York City protests on the pandemic, the city’s health commissioner Dr.?Oxiris Barbot said that to date, there have not been any “significant spikes” in the number of people visiting emergency departments for Covid-19-like illnesses.
The city monitors data from each of the emergency departments and Barbot said “to date thankfully we have not seen any significant spikes in the number of people that are visiting the emergency departments for Covid-like illness but we are paying really close attention to that.”
Individuals participating in protests are encouraged to wear a mask and maintain a 6 foot distance.
Overall, the city is still in a “moderate transmission phase,” Barbot said.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said “thank god” the protests were outdoor activities, “which does change the equation,” though he is still “very worried” there may still be an impact.?
After a 78-day lockdown, the city?enters phase one?of reopening today, with some nonessential workers allowed to go back to work and retail stores allowed to reopen for pickup.
Four states – California, Texas, Florida and Illinois – are all outpacing New York state in their averages of daily new coronavirus cases, according to a CNN analysis.
California, on average, saw the most new cases per day over the week ending June 7, averaging about 2,666 daily new cases, Johns Hopkins University data shows.
Texas averaged about 1,537 daily new cases, followed by Florida with about 1,111 daily new cases and Illinois with about 1,071 daily new cases.
New York rounds out the top five states with an average of about 1,047 new cases per day.
While the number of new cases in California, Texas and Florida have generally been increasing, both Illinois and New York have seen a decrease in new cases reported.
All markers for New York City indicators of the Covid-19 virus are under their thresholds, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday.
“We have the health data to continue to give us hope that things are moving in the right direction.”
People admitted to hospitals for suspected Covid-19 – which needs to be under the threshold of 200 – is at 67, the mayor said.
Daily number of people in health and hospitals ICUs – which needs to be under the threshold of 375, is today at 326, a number that “continues to go down,” de Blasio said.
Percentage of people city wide who tested positive for Covid-19 – which needs to be under the threshold of 15%, is at 3%.?
This is the “biggest” measure to show where the city stands in its fight against the virus, and “the lowest number we have seen.”
“That is a great great sign,” he added.?
“If we would like reopening, we got to stick with it, and make sure we do it right…” the mayor warned.
New York City Mayor?Bill de Blasio announced 20 new miles of busways and bus lanes to help foster movement of New Yorkers as the city enters phase one of reopening.
The lanes will help 750,000 New Yorkers to have a “faster way to work, more frequent service, less crowding,” the mayor said.
There will also be five new busways in the city, he said.
The busways will launch between June and October and will?be on a one-year trial basis for each of the lines.The first one will launch from main street in Queens.
There will also be an increase in rush hour service on the Staten Island ferry, launching every 20 minutes. There will be social distancing markers, hand sanitizer and face coverings for free.
With regard to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the city will send 800 New York Police Department school safety agents throughout the system at high priority stations to provide face coverings and promote social distancing
Alternative side parking is suspended for the next two weeks.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said that as the city moved into phase one of its reopening plan today, it’s making it’s long-awaited “comeback.”
“We have been the epicenter of this crisis,” he said, adding that the city is a place where “it was going to be the hardest to make a comeback.”
He thanked New Yorkers for their efforts to help toward beginning this “next chapter” and urged residents not to “forget the lessons we’ve learned.”
“We knew we would get to this day, it would take a lot of work, but we are finally here,” he added.
What’s reopening today: Construction, manufacturing and wholesale suppliers will be allowed to resume work today, and non-essential retail outlets will be allowed to reopen for curbside and in-store pickup.
This weekend marked the most air travel since the coronavirus pandemic caused the industry to bottom out this spring.??
More than 400,000 people were screened by the Transportation Security Administration on two days – both Friday and Sunday, the agency said.?It is the first time that has happened in nearly 11 weeks.??
But those numbers are still significantly smaller than normal.?The 441,000 travelers on Sunday was only 17% of the same Sunday in 2019, according to TSA figures.??
American Airlines said this was its busiest weekend since early March, and Sunday was the busiest day since March.??
More travelers means more people are on each flight.?Airlines for America, which represents the major airlines, says the average domestic flight departs with 54 passengers onboard – up from fewer than 20 at the low point.?
Momentum for the US stock market isn’t letting up. Stocks kicked off higher on Monday, adding onto their rally from last week.
Here’s what happened at this week’s opening:
As New York City enters phase one of reopening today, Metropolitan Transportation Authority?Chair?Patrick Foye said the authority can’t guarantee social distancing during rush-hour trains.?
“We are?not promising social distance on rush-hour trains. We’re being candid with our customers. But we’re also being candid by telling — we’re disinfecting every subway car, bus, and commuter rail at every nigh,” he said in a radio interview with WCBS 880.
Beginning today, the MTA will distribute two millions masks contributed by New York City and State.
During the radio interview with WCBS 880, Foye said a survey last week showed that 92% of commuters surveyed were wearing masks.
Oil giant BP will cut almost 15% of its workforce globally as it looks to reduce costs as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Chief Executive Bernard Looney told staff in an email Monday obtained by CNN.
BP said it will cut 10,000 jobs, mostly by the end of 2020, with the majority of people affected in office-based roles rather than frontline operational ones.?
BP also said its senior staff will not receive a pay rise through March 31, 2021, and that annual cash bonuses would be “very unlikely” for anyone this year.
Looney admitted that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused a widespread economic fallout affecting both BP and the wider industry.
“The oil price has plunged well below the level we need to turn a profit. We are spending much, much more than we make – I am talking millions of dollars, every day. And as a result, our net debt rose by $6 billion in the first quarter,” Looney said.?
After a 78-day lockdown, New York City enters phase one of reopening today, with some nonessential workers allowed to go back to work and retail stores allowed to reopen for pickup.
The mayor said there’s a sense of discipline and service in the city — a sense of “we’re all in it together and we have to get it right.”?
Here are the industries opening in phase one:?
So what’s not opening? Hair salons, offices and indoor seating at bars and restaurants remain off-limits until the next reopening phase. And Broadway shows, museums and large cultural gatherings are still far off.
The 78-day lockdown represents the longest in the country and comes weeks after other parts of the state hit the necessary criteria to reopen.
WATCH:
Russia is partially reopening its borders for several kinds of trips,?Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced in a Monday meeting with the country’s coronavirus response council.
Russians will be able to travel abroad to care for relatives, undergo medical treatment, to work or study. Foreigners will also be able to enter Russia for medical purposes, Mishustin said, adding that corresponding government decrees have already been signed.
Moscow is also lifting quarantine restrictions starting Tuesday, Moscow mayor Sergey Sobyanin said in a statement published Monday. The restrictions will be lifted in three stages and the city is expected to return to normal by the end of the month, the mayor added.
Starting Tuesday, Moscow will lift its self-isolation regime, as well as measures meant to ensure it: QR-codes for trips around the city and scheduled walks. Barber shops, beauty salons and veterinary clinics will be allowed to reopen, the statement said. Moscow residents will also be able to visit cemeteries.?
In a week’s time - starting on June 16 - Moscow will reopen its museums, zoos, libraries, transport rentals and other agencies. Cafes and restaurants with summer terraces will be allowed to resume services as well.
The third and final stage involves reopening all cafes, bars, gyms, pools as well as most other public spaces and is scheduled for June 23.
The numbers: Russia has officially reported 476,658 cases of coronavirus with 5,971 reported deaths and 230,688 recoveries.?
As of Monday, Moscow has officially reported 2,001 new cases of coronavirus. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Moscow has reported over 197,000 cases in total.?
The UK has imposed a mandatory 14-day quarantine on international passengers arriving in the country, beginning on Monday.?
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been criticized for not implementing such a restriction at the beginning of the pandemic, with UK airlines jointly bringing legal action against the government.?
There are some exceptions to the quarantine rules. Truck drivers, frontline healthcare workers and elite athletes coming for bio-secure soccer or cricket matches or F1’s British Grand Prix in late July will all be exempt.
Everyone else will be required to fill out a form prior to arrival, providing the government with an address at which they plan to isolate for two weeks.
While ￡1,000 ($1,260) fines will be imposed on those who breach the conditions in the UK, only a fifth of travelers are expected to get spot checks.
Some conditions of the quarantine have further fueled questions over its likely effectiveness. Travelers arriving in the country will be able to go to their destination on public transport, and to leave their accommodation to shop for essentials.?
Elsewhere in Europe: It comes as Spain enters the final phase of de-escalation?in the Covid-19 crisis before the government’s plan for a “new normality” sets in. More than half of the country has advanced to Phase 3, with the rest in Phase 2, including Madrid and Barcelona.
Those in regions in Phase 3 can travel within their territories, exercise as much as they like outdoors, attend gatherings of up to 20 people and visit beaches with social distancing.
Restaurants, movie theaters and stores may open at 50% capacity and clubs and bars will be able to operate at a third of capacity, but dancing will not be allowed.?
Bullfighting events, weddings and funerals will be allowed with limits on attendees.
No?shared?menus, napkin?dispensers, or saltshakers will be permitted at bars and restaurants
Ireland today entered Phase Two of its roadmap to ease lockdown restrictions. On Friday, Irish Prime Minister (Taoiseach) Leo Varadkar announced an acceleration of the country’s roadmap based on “medical evidence” and “government reports.”
Irish people may now move freely within their county. People living on the border of two counties may cross 20km over the border. Citizens may meet in groups of 6 people indoors and outdoors, while keeping to a social distance of 2 meters. All retail has reopened, with staggered opening hours and social distancing measures in place. Groups of up to 15 may attend sports training and up to 25 may attend funerals. Libraries have reopened. Playgrounds may reopen and outdoor summer camps for children in groups of 15 can take place. Working from home is encouraged where possible.
Phase Three is scheduled for June 29, when restaurants will reopen and all domestic travel restrictions lifted.
As of Monday, Denmark is allowing gatherings of up to 50 people, up from 10, Danish Health Ministry Press Officer Solveig R?igaard-Petersen told CNN.
According to the Danish Statens Serum Institut, a research institute to prevent and control infectious diseases, 11,940 people in Denmark have contracted coronavirus, with 589 dead in the country.?
If large-scale shutdown policies?— such as ordering people to stay home and closing schools — were not implemented after?the coronavirus pandemic made its way to the United States, there would be roughly 60 million more coronavirus infections across the nation, a new modeling study suggests.
The study, published Monday in the scientific journal Nature, involved a modeling technique typically used for estimating economic growth to measure the effect of shutdown policies across six countries: China, South Korea, Italy, Iran, France and the United States.
Those estimates suggest that, without certain policies in place from the beginning of the pandemic in January through early April, there would be roughly:
Overall, the study suggests that emergency Covid-19 policies prevented more than 500 million total coronavirus infections across all six countries.?
The study period ended on April 6, but keeping shutdown orders in place after that time has likely led to even more coronavirus infections being avoided — even though maintaining such measures has been difficult, the study’s lead author, Solomon Hsiang, a professor and director of the Global Policy Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, said in a press release on Monday.
“I don’t think any human endeavor has ever saved so many lives in such a short period of time. There have been huge personal costs to staying home and canceling events, but the data show that each day made a profound difference,” Hsiang added. “By using science and cooperating, we changed the course of history.”
The study, conducted by researchers at UC Berkeley, included data across the six countries on daily infection rates, changes in coronavirus case definitions and the timing of 1,717 policy deployments — including travel restrictions, social distancing measures and stay-at-home lockdowns — from the earliest available dates this year through April 6.
The researchers analyzed that data to estimate how the daily growth rate of infections could have changed over time within a specific location if there were different combinations of large-scale policies enacted. The data showed that, excluding Iran, the growth rate of infections was around 38% per day on average?before policies slowed the spread.?
The researchers found that, across all six countries total, shutdown interventions prevented or delayed roughly 530 million total infections — which, based on testing procedures and how cases were defined, translates to about 62 million confirmed cases.?
The researchers did not estimate how many deaths might have been prevented.
“Our analysis focuses on confirmed infections, but other outcomes, such as hospitalizations or deaths, are also of policy interest. Future work on these outcomes may require additional modeling approaches because they are relatively more context- and state-dependent,” the researchers wrote in the study.
Remember: The study had some limitations, including that available data on infections and measures across the countries were limited and the study can only suggest estimations about what could have happened.
“Our empirical results indicate that large-scale anti-contagion policies are slowing the COVID-19 pandemic,” the researchers wrote in the study. “Because infection rates in the countries we study would have initially followed rapid exponential growth had no policies been applied, our results suggest that these policies have provided large health benefits.”?
AstraZeneca?has approached rival drugmaker?Gilead?about a potential merger, according to a Bloomberg report.?
Neither company responded to requests for comment on Monday, but if the transaction were to take place, it would unite two of the leading players in the fight against?coronavirus?in the biggest health care deal on record.
AstraZeneca has secured production capacity to make?2 billion doses?of a potential vaccine, while the experimental Gilead drug?remdesivir?has been approved by the US government to treat hospitalized patients with severe Covid-19.
Shares in?AstraZeneca?dropped by more than 2% in London – even as the?FTSE 100?index rose – after?Bloomberg?reported that the UK-based company had made a preliminary approach last month to US firm?Gilead. The two companies have a combined stock market value of nearly $140 billion.
What’s behind the move? Bloomberg cautioned that AstraZeneca did not specify any financial terms for a deal. Its report also said that Gilead discussed the idea with advisers, but the companies were not in formal discussions.?
Analysts said the rationale for the potential deal was not immediately obvious. According to UBS, AstraZeneca and its smaller rival have little in common when it comes to products and strategy. Still, Gilead does have something AstraZeneca does not — plenty of cash.
Read the full story here:
Coronavirus cases in the US are nearing 2 million, and at least 110,514 people have died of the virus, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.
There are at least?1,942,363?cases of coronavirus across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases – the highest figure of any country in the world.
New York has the highest number of cases of any state at 378,097 and the most deaths, at 30,374.
There are now more than 7 million cases worldwide and 400,000 deaths globally.
Coronavirus cases are rising faster than ever – at a rate of more than 100,000 day – propelled by a steep increase in case numbers in South and Latin America and the Caribbean.
Armenia’s Prime Minister has returned to work after being diagnosed with coronavirus, his press officer has told CNN.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan started working from home early last week?
“The Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, his spouse, Anna Hakobyan, and three of their children have been tested negative for the coronavirus in a double testing. The PM will be back on his full duties starting from today,” Mane Gevorgyan, the Prime Minister’s press officer, said in a text message.
Pashinyan is one of several senior politicians to be diagnosed with the virus. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson spent time in intensive care suffering from Covid-19, while Kentucky senator Rand Paul tested positive for the virus in March.
Iran’s Vice President Masoumeh Ebtekar and Deputy Health Minister?Iraj Harirchi both tested positive for the virus, and an adviser to the country’s?Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei died after contracting it.
Justin Trudeau’s wife Sophie was also diagnosed with the virus, forcing the Canadian Prime Minister to isolate for two weeks.
Britain’s Prince Charles and Monaco’s Prince Albert also contracted Covid-19.
Health officials have raised concern about the spread of coronavirus, as thousands of people?brave the pandemic to participate in national protests sparked by the death?of George Floyd.?
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Sunday it was closely monitoring demonstrations taking place across the US, and warned that such gatherings could spur coronavirus transmission. Some states are already seeing upward trends of new cases.
For three months, the country passed one grim milestone after the other, hitting 100,000 coronavirus deaths in late May. Public health officials have said that without the lockdowns most states put in place, the death toll could have been significantly higher.?
As those lockdowns were lifted and other measures were loosened, the CDC and other top health officials urged Americans to use face coverings when they go out, and always maintain a distance.?
But?large protests make it hard to keep to the recommended social distancing guidelines and “may put others at risk,” CDC spokesperson Kristen Nordlund said in a statement.
Earlier this month, CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield said protesters should be evaluated and tested for the virus.
“I do think there is a potential, unfortunately, for this to be a seeding event,” he said – especially in metropolitan areas where there has been significant transmission.
Read the full story here:
Directors and executives of around 480 listed companies can apply for exemption from the 14-day compulsory quarantine when arriving in Hong Kong from mainland China, according to a government statement issued on Monday morning.?
Companies can start to apply for the exemption from Monday.
Companies that are listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong and included in the Hang Seng Index, Hang Seng China Enterprises Index or Hang Seng Composite LargeCap, MidCap or SmallCap Index, can nominate a maximum of two persons each for the exemption.
But visits must be for performing duties related to the essential operation of the companies, such as board meetings, business review meetings or meetings with clients, or executing legal documents, the statement said.?
Directors and executives will also be subject to 14-day medical surveillance upon arrival, which requires them to wear masks, check their body temperature daily, and report any symptoms or health concerns to the Hong Kong health department.
Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal went into self-isolation on Monday at his official residence in New Delhi after showing coronavirus symptoms.
Spokesman Sanjay Singh said the Chief Minister had been complaining of a fever, cough, cold and sore throat since Sunday evening.
The 51-year-old chief minister is diabetic, so doctors have asked him to self-isolate and take precautions. He will undergo a Covid-19 test on Tuesday, Singh added.
All meetings with the chief minister have been called off till further notice, he added.
Case numbers: Delhi, with an estimated population of 19 million, has reported 27,654 coronavirus cases, including 761 deaths, as of Monday morning local time.
China is trying to dig itself out of a steep economic slump. But as the rest of the world still battles with the?coronavirus pandemic, the path to recovery is looking slow and painful.?
Exports in the world’s second largest economy last month dropped 3.3% in US dollar terms compared to a year ago, customs data released this weekend showed, reversing a 3.5% rise in April.
Analysts attributed the downturn to weak demand abroad: While China began reopening its economy months ago, many other global powers have only begun to lift some lockdown measures in the past few weeks.
The recovery at home hasn’t been entirely smooth for China either. Imports last month plunged 16.7% in US dollar terms from a year ago — the deepest contraction since January 2016 — suggesting domestic demand remains sluggish.
Read the full story here:
China’s Foreign Ministry has called on US Senator Rick Scott to “produce the evidence” after he accused China of trying to “sabotage” US vaccine efforts.
“The Senator claims there is evidence showing China is sabotaging and slowing down Western countries’ [vaccine] efforts, I hope he will just produce the evidence,” said Hua Chunying, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday.?
Hua said research and development for a coronavirus vaccine is not “a race between China and the US but between humans and the virus.” She added that if China successfully develops a vaccine it will be made a “global public good.”
Hua’s comments come after Scott told the BBC during an interview: “We have got to get this vaccine done. Unfortunately, we have evidence that communist China is trying to sabotage us or slow it down.”
New Zealand is lifting almost all restrictions now that it no longer has any active cases of Covid-19 – but its international borders will remain shut to non-residents to prevent new outbreaks.
That is, unless they receive special permission.
Some overseas visitors and businesspeople will be allowed to enter the country and work there if they can demonstrate that they will provide a benefit to the New Zealand economy.
Acclaimed film director James Cameron is one of those. He and his crew have been given permission by the New Zealand government to work inside the country on “Avatar 2,” CNN learned today.
The first “Avatar” movie is the highest-grossing film in history, bringing in roughly $2.8 billion at the worldwide box office in 2009.
The release date for “Avatar 2” has been bumped from December 18, 2020 to December, 17, 2021.
Japan recorded no new coronavirus deaths on Sunday – the first time this has happened since March 6, around the time when the pandemic saw infection rates soar in the country.
A total of 38 new infections were recorded on Sunday, according to the country’s health ministry.
This brings the national total to 17,886 cases and 929 deaths, including the 712 infections and 13 fatalities from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that was docked in quarantine off Yokohama Bay for two weeks in February.
Japan has recorded fewer than 100 new cases per day since May 14.
The United States now has at least?1,942,363?cases of coronavirus and 110,514 related deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
On Sunday, Johns Hopkins reported?22,302?new cases and?712?new deaths in the US.
The totals includes cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases.
New York remains the hardest hit state, with 378,097 cases and 30,374 deaths. New Jersey, California, and Illinois follow next.
Zoé Robledo, the director of Mexico’s Institute of Social Security, announced on Sunday that he has tested positive for Covid-19 – just two days after he was seen with the country’s President.
Robledo said he would continue to do his do his work remotely, adding that he was closely following the instructions of his “extraordinary doctors” and that his?case was being closely monitored and contact tracing was underway.
On Friday, Robledo spoke at President?Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s daily press conference, in the company of the nation’s top security officials.
The President was on stage as Robledo spoke, as well as Secretary of Defense Luis Cresencio Sandoval, Naval Secretary Rafael Ojeda and Secretary of Security and Civilian Protection Alfonso Durazo.?
The men were spaced apart several feet on stage, but none were wearing masks.??
The west Indian state of Maharashtra now has a total of 85,975 coronavirus cases, including 3,060 deaths, the country’s health ministry announced Monday.
The updated tally means Maharashtra now has more cases than all of China, which has 83,040 cases as of today, according to China’s National Health Commission.
Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra and home to about 18.3 million people, is the worst hit city nationwide. The city has reported 48,549 cases of coronavirus, including 1,636 deaths.
India’s nationwide total stands at 256,611 cases, according to the country’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare – of which, approximately a third are in concentrated in Maharashtra state.
Lifting restrictions: India entered the “Unlock 1” reopening phase today, which allows most economic activities to resume.
But Mumbai still has major restrictions in place, effective for schools, train services, cinemas, shopping malls, places of worship, and more spaces.
Only essential workers are allowed to move through Mumbai roads, while travel by rail or air is still prohibited unless specifically?allowed by separate orders and standard operating procedures.
Almost all coronavirus restrictions in New Zealand will be lifted tomorrow, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced, after the country reported no active cases.
Schools and workplaces will be able to reopen?under the new “level 1” rules,?with no limitations on gatherings or domestic travel.
However, social distancing is still encouraged, and Ardern said New Zealand’s international borders will remain shut to non-residents to prevent new outbreaks. Residents arriving in New Zealand will still have to quarantine for two weeks.
New Zealand currently has no active coronavirus cases, and no positive cases reported in the past 17 days.
There has been no one receiving treatment in hospital for Covid-19 for the past 12 days and it has been 40 days since the last case of community transmission.
Read the full story here:
Pakistan’s total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases has now crossed 100,000, according to the country’s ministry of health.?
According to the health ministry, Pakistan now has recorded 103,671 infections since the start of the pandemic, and 2,067 related deaths.
The country diagnosed 4,728 cases in just the past 24 hours, said the ministry.
Pakistan lifted its nationwide lockdown in early May, though the rate of new infections continues to rise – which could be in part due to an increase in testing by the government.?
The country has conducted 705,833 tests as of Monday, with 22,650 tests conducted in the past 24 hours, said the ministry.
The US economy is reopening and the labor market is bouncing back after dramatic losses during the height of the Covid-19 lockdown. But a major risk lies ahead.
The lion’s share of economists participating in the June National Associate of Business Economics Outlook Survey – 87% – believe a second wave of infections could imperil a rebound and become the biggest danger to America’s economy this year.
The pandemic has claimed?more than 100,000 lives?in the United States and forced the country to go into lockdown in March. Businesses shuttered and laid off millions of people, leading to the?steepest job losses on record?— 20.7 million — in April.
The?labor market bounced back strongly in May, adding 2.5 million new jobs as states begin to reopen. But the staggered restart of the economy could lead to renewed spreading of the highly contagious virus. This could, in turn, lead to a second lockdown that would bring yet more economic pain.
Read the full story here:
The fate of next year’s?Olympic Games?depends on Japan’s handling of the coronavirus, according to the Tokyo governor.
Gov. Yuriko Koike said the Games could signify a “victory” over the pandemic, but admitted that more work is still needed to improve treatment and testing, and that organizers were contending with a number of uncertainties.
The Olympics were originally scheduled to begin in July, but?the start date has been moved?to July 24 next year amid the Covid-19 outbreak.
“The Tokyo 2020 Olympics are an important event that everyone has been waiting for,” Koike told CNN’s Will Ripley.
Organizers said in December that the cost of hosting the Olympics was some?1.35 trillion yen ($12.35 billion),?while sponsors, insurers and broadcasters have also committed billions to the Games.
Read the full interview here.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday said it’s closely monitoring the demonstrations happening across America.
The comments come amid concerns that the protests – like other gatherings – could spur additional coronavirus transmission.
“It is too early to know what, if any, effect these events will have on the federal COVID-19 response. Every local situation is different. State and local officials will make decisions to protect public health and safety based on circumstances on the ground,” she said.
Earlier this week:?CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield said protesters should be evaluated and tested for coronavirus.
“We really want those individuals to highly consider being evaluated and get tested,” Redfield said Thursday at a House Appropriations hearing on the Covid-19 response.
?“I do think there is a potential, unfortunately, for this to be a seeding event,” he said –?especially in metropolitan areas where there has been significant transmission.
Redfield also addressed the use of tear gas and similar chemical agents?on protesters, saying these agents can cause people to cough – which spreads respiratory viruses.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city is within parameters regarding its Covid-19 data to proceed as planned with their phase one reopening on Monday.
The statewide thresholds to enter phase one include:
As of Sunday, NYC hospitals have admitted 72 people due to Covid-19, 324 people remain in ICUs, and 4% of the city is currently testing positive for Covid-19, de Blasio said.
The US government’s current supply of remdesivir, the only drug known to work against Covid-19, will run out at the end of the month, a federal health official told CNN.
The government’s last shipment of the drug will go out the week of June 29. Gilead Sciences, the company that makes the drug, is ramping up to make more, but it’s unclear how much will be available this summer.
Last month, the US Food and Drug Administration gave emergency authorization for remdesivir, an intravenous antiviral medication studied to treat Ebola but now used on hospitalized Covid patients.
While not a blockbuster drug, a study shows it shaves four days off a hospital stay, from 15 to 11 days.
Read the full story here.
Coronavirus-related cases and deaths?across Latin America?are rising faster than anywhere in the world. And in the worst-hit countries, they show no signs of slowing down. The region has recorded nearly 1.2 million cases and more than 60,000 deaths.
The WHO does not believe either Central or South America have reached peak transmission, meaning the number of people getting sick and dying might continue to rise.
Brazil?is stuck in crisis mode. The country has recorded at least 645,771 coronavirus cases and 35,026 deaths.
It recently passed Italy to become the country with the third-highest deaths in the world and will likely surpass the United Kingdom soon.
Mexico recorded its worst week of the outbreak, both in confirmed cases and deaths.
It recorded more than 1,000 deaths in a single day for the first time. And for three consecutive days, it recorded single-day highs in new cases.
Despite the bleak numbers, and conflicting messages from government leaders, officials have pushed ahead with a phased reopening plan across the country.
Peru has one of Latin America’s worst outbreaks. It has 187,400 cases, the second highest in the region behind Brazil.
People in the city of Callao lined up for hours this week to get their oxygen tanks refilled. But once they got to the front of the line, relatives of patients with Covid-19 found skyrocketing prices.
Uruguay is the success story. The country of roughly 3.5 million people borders Brazil, which has the worst outbreak in Latin America.
But Uruguay has recorded just 834 cases. It has recorded one death since May 24 and just 23 fatalities in total.
Experts say the reasons for the country’s success are numerous – a robust early response including quarantine measures, a large and efficient system of tracing and isolating those infected, randomized testing and the creation of a crisis response committee.
