(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump escalated his rhetoric against China, suggesting that leader Xi Jinping is behind a “disinformation and propaganda attack on the United States and Europe.” Meanwhile China reported two new cases of the coronavirus and Japan is looking to lift its state of emergency for the Osaka region.
The virus-ravaged USS Theodore Roosevelt returned to sea. A potential $1 trillion could be lost from global growth as female workers fall out of the workforce during the coronavirus, according to a new analysis by Citigroup Inc.
Key Developments:
- Virus Tracker: Cases top 4.9 million; deaths exceed 328,000
- Big banks plan staffing limits, shift to suburbs after lockdown
- CDC issues detailed guidance for reopening businesses
- New York sees spreading in lower-income communities
- Read how the WHO is caught in a dangerous place between Trump and China
- China’s new outbreak shows signs the virus could be changing
Subscribe to a daily update on the virus from Bloomberg’s Prognosis team here. Click VRUS on the terminal for news and data on the coronavirus. See this week’s top stories from QuickTake here.
S.Korea Says Nightclub-Linked Cases Rise to 201 (10:39 a.m. HK)
Nightclub-related coronavirus cases increase to 201 as of midnight from 196 at noon yesterday, Yoon Tae-ho, director-general for public health policy at the health ministry, said in a briefing.
Trump Points Finger at China’s Xi (10:00 a.m. HK)
“It all comes from the top,” Trump said in a series of tweets on Wednesday night. He added that China was “desperate” to have former Vice President Joe Biden win the presidential race.
Japan to Keep Tokyo Under Emergency, Lift Osaka Order (9:24 a.m. HK)
Japan is looking to lift its state of emergency for the Osaka region as early as Thursday, but keep the order in place for Tokyo, where cases have not yet fallen below a government threshold.
Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, responsible for the government’s virus response, told reporters Thursday ahead of a meeting of a government advisory panel on the pandemic that it’s appropriate to lift the measure in Osaka and two adjoining prefectures and didn’t suggest lifting it for the Tokyo region.
Women Job Losses Could Shave $1 Trillion Off GDP (8:47 a.m. HK)
Of 44 million workers in vulnerable sectors, about 31 million female workers face potential job cuts compared to 13 million men, underscoring that women globally are more vulnerable to losing their jobs during the crisis, according to Citigroup Inc. The assessment excludes China, with the figure likely to be higher if the world’s second-largest economy was included.
Virus-Ravaged USS Theodore Roosevelt Returns to Sea (8:38 a.m. HK)
The USS Theodore Roosevelt “left Naval Base Guam and entered the Philippine Sea May 21 to conduct carrier qualification flights for the embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 11,” the U.S. 7th Fleet Commander said in a statement. The ship moored in Guam after crew members tested positive for Covid-19.
China Reports 2 New Cases, Including 1 in Shanghai (8:33 a.m. HK)
One local coronavirus infection is reported in Shanghai and one imported case is in Guangdong province, National Health Commission said in a statement. 31 asymptomatic cases are reported; three of them are from overseas.
Tokyo Omitted Around 40 From Early May Tally: NHK (7:18 a.m. HK)
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government omitted about 40 people from its coronavirus tally through early May, NHK reported, citing an unidentified official. The tally was understated due to data from local health authorities being reported incorrectly, the same issue the government faced earlier this month when it failed to record 76 cases.
EU Calls for Masks, Distancing in Air Travel Guide (6:41 a.m HK)
European Union regulators called on passengers to wear face masks, observe physical distancing and frequently wash their hands in new guidelines for air travel in the age of Covid-19.
Brazil Has Another Record Day for Cases (6 a.m. HK)
Brazil reported 19,951 new confirmed cases over the past 24 hours, a fresh record. The country has 291,579 infections, trailing only the U.S. and Russia.
Earlier Wednesday, Brazil’s health ministry loosened protocols for the use of anti-malarial drug chloroquine to fight the virus, indicating it even for mild cases despite dangerous side effects, experts’ warnings and no demonstrated success in clinical trials.
Expedia Sees First Revenue Decline in Eight Years (5:05 p.m. NY)
Expedia Group Inc. followed its peers in the online travel industry in witnessing a staggering decline in business since the spread of the virus, with total gross bookings down 39% in the first quarter.
The Seattle-based company reported total gross bookings of $17.89 billion, including a decline of as much as 90% in the second half of March as the pandemic took hold. Revenue fell 15% to $2.21 billion, its first quarterly drop in eight years.
Turkey Declares #MissionAccomplished (4:57 p.m. NY)
The communications director for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the country’s outbreak has been contained. Turkey had 152,587 confirmed coronavirus cases, ninth-highest in the world, as of Wednesday.
“Turkey under Recep Tayyip Erdogan invested billions in healthcare infrastructure, let top scientists devise a strategy and treated all COVID-19 patients for free,” Fahrettin Altun said in a Twitter post. “The result? Our recovery rate is almost 75 percent. The pandemic has been contained. #MissionAccomplished.”
Disney, Universal to Submit Florida Reopening Plans (4:25 p.m. NY)
Walt Disney Co., Comcast Corp.’s Universal Studios and SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. are taking another step toward reopening their massive theme parks in Orlando, Florida.
The operators will begin submitting their plans to a reopening task force on Thursday, a spokesperson for Florida’s Orange County said in an email. Universal is slated to make its presentation on Thursday, with the others coming at a later date.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said last week that theme-park operators could begin reopening once they submit plans and win approval from local authorities. Jerry Demings, the mayor of Orange County, later said it will still likely be June or afterward before the resorts completely reopen.
Ohio Unemployed Data Exposed (4:15 p.m. NY)
Ohio said that “about two dozen” Pandemic Unemployment Assistance applicants were apparently able to view the personal data, including social security numbers of the more than 100,000 other applicants. The state has hired Deloitte consultants to clean up the mess and give free credit monitoring to about 130,000 people who might have been impacted.
The access to others data was “accidental” and that there is “no evidence of any widespread data compromise” from the mistake, Ohio’s Department of Job and Family Services said.
On Sunday, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker’s office disclosed that a glitch in a newly launched state system for processing unemployment claims for gig workers had publicly exposed personal information.
U.S. Cases Rise 1.3% (4 p.m. NY)
Coronavirus cases in the U.S. increased 1.3% as compared to the same time yesterday to 1.54 million, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg News. That’s less than Tuesday’s 1.6% rate, which was on par with the average of the past seven days. Deaths rose 1.6% to 92,645.
- New York cases rose 0.4% to 354,370, according to the state’s health department. That was below the average daily increase of 0.6% over the past week.
- New Jersey reached 150,399 cases after adding 1,670, a 0.9% increase that matched the rate of the past seven days, according to Governor Phil Murphy. The death toll reached 10,747 with 168 new fatalities, the sixth-straight day of fewer than 200.
- Florida reported 47,471 cases, up 1.1% from a day earlier, according to the state’s health department. That compared with an average increase of 1.6% in the previous seven days. Deaths rose 1% to 2,096.
- California added 2,262 cases, a 2.8% jump, for a total of 84,057. There were 102 daily deaths, the most in four weeks.
- Texas cases climbed 2.8%, in line with its average over the past seven days, to 51,323.
