A Spanish soldier stands next to beds set up at a temporary hospital for vulnerable people at the Fira Barcelona Montjuic centre in Barcelona on March 25, 2020, during the new coronavirus epidemic.
Pau Barrena | AFP | Getty Images
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- Global cases: At least 416,686, according to the latest figures from the World Health Organization
- Global deaths: At least 18,589, according to the latest figures from the WHO
- Top six countries with the highest number of reported cases: China (81,869), Italy (69,176), U.S. (51,914), Spain (39,673), Germany (31,554), Iran (27,017).
All times below are in Beijing time.
9:15 am: China’s resumption of work rises
The resumption of work rate for small and medium-sized enterprises throughout the country reached 71.7% as of March 24, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology disclosed Wednesday. The ministry also noted the figure marked an increase of 42.1 percentage points from a month ago. — Evelyn Cheng
8:55 am: LA Mayor Garcetti says city to receive $1.1 billion for airport, metro system
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Wednesday said the federal government’s COVID-19 stimulus package will give the city receive $400 million for its airport and $700 million for its metro system. The package will also provide Los Angeles with “tens of millions” in community development block grants to aid the worst off, like seniors and unemployed, Garcetti said.
Los Angeles will also receive $32 million in emergency solution grants to help house the homeless. ”I call this an economic survival bill because while it’s not enough, it maybe will ensure that some folks will be able to get through the next month or two,” Garcetti said.
Garcetti also said that Los Angeles will not shut off water or power or impose any late fees for those bills during this time. Additionally, he said that the city will relax enforcement of parking tickets and that Los Angeles Police Department will not give tickets to any individuals driving with expired drivers licenses. ”Everyone of these changes is about the same principle — that you are safer at home,” Garcetti said. — Salvador Rodriguez
8:05 am: China reports 67 new cases, 6 more deaths
China’s National Health Commission reported it had 67 new confirmed cases, and six more deaths as of March 25.
All the new cases were imported, meaning people who traveled from overseas, with the overall number of imported cases at 541. None of the additional cases were in Hubei, the epicenter of the outbreak, but all six deaths were in the province.
That brings China’s total case count to 67,801, and its death toll to 3,287. — Weizhen Tan
7:55 am: Spain’s death toll spikes in biggest daily jump, now overtakes China
Spain reported 738 coronavirus-related deaths in the past 24 hours — its highest daily death toll yet, according to Reuters. Its total number of confirmed deaths was 3,434 as of Wednesday, and overall infections were at 47,610.
Spain’s death toll has now surpassed China, days after Italy overtook China. Italy’s confirmed fatality count was last at 6,820 according to data from the World Health Organization. Both countries have been among the worst-hit in Europe, and now account for the highest numbers of fatalities globally, according to the report.— Weizhen Tan
7:45 am: India needs to help its most vulnerable survive a 3-week lockdown
India’s move to put its 1.3 billion people in a 21-day lockdown to contain the coronavirus outbreak will disproportionately hurt the informal sector, experts told CNBC.
The whole nation was placed under lockdown on Wednesday, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that people would not be allowed to leave their homes for three weeks after the order went into effect.
The impact of the lockdown on India’s informal sector, which includes many street vendors as well as taxi and auto drivers, will be huge, Kunal Kundu, India economist at Societe Generale, told CNBC. — Saheli Roy Choudhury
All times below are in Eastern time.
7:04 pm: FDA warns consumers against fraudulent coronavirus tests, vaccines and treatments
Consumers should beware of buying or using products that sellers claim will help diagnose, treat, cure or prevent COVID-19 as the coronavirus continues to sweep across the country, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday.
Some companies are trying to profit from the pandemic by selling unproven and illegally marketed products and falsely claiming they are able to prevent or cure the coronavirus, the FDA said.
“Because COVID-19 has never been seen in humans before, there are currently no vaccines to prevent or drugs to treat” the coronavirus that have been approved by the FDA, the agency said. “These fraudulent products that claim to cure, treat, or prevent COVID-19 haven’t been evaluated by the FDA for safety and effectiveness and might be dangerous to you and your family.” —Noah Higgins-Dunn
6:41 pm: Futures point to gains at the open, building on two-day rally
U.S. stock futures moved modestly higher in early trading and pointed to gains at the open on Thursday, building on recent strength in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500.
The two indexes have just posted their first back-to-back gains since February. Fueling the rally is the hope that the White House and Senate will soon agree to a stimulus package to prop up markets as the coronavirus outbreak rages on.
Dow futures rose 161 points, indicating a gain of 107 points at the open. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were also set to open higher, with gains of 0.8% and 1%, respectively. —Pippa Stevens
4:44 pm: California sees one million unemployment claims in less than two weeks
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that Wells Fargo, Citi, JPMorgan, and U.S. Bank all agreed to grant a 90-day waiver for mortgage payments “for those impacted by COVID-19.” The announcement came after he said that one million Californians have applied for unemployment insurance since March 13. Newsom also announced measures the state is taking to prepare for a surge in COVID-19 patients. The state has ordered 100 million new masks, he said, and the state is ramping up its number of available hospital beds and ventilators, a potentially life-saving device that helps patients breathe. —Will Feuer
Read CNBC’s coverage from the U.S. overnight: Hundreds flood NYC hospital ICU, ERs; global coronavirus cases top 466,000