U.S. Cases Steady; U.K. Infections at 3-Month High: Virus Update

(Bloomberg) --

The U.S. reported almost 45,000 new cases, in line with the previous week’s average daily increase. Cases in New York slowed. Florida and Arizona reported fewer infections and deaths.

New infections in the U.K. increased by the most in more than three months. Germany’s infection rate ticked up. France’s caseload was called “worrying” and Ireland had its worst weekend since May.

The Israeli government is weighing new lockdown restrictions that could target ultra-Orthodox Jewish and Arab towns, as the death toll topped 1,000. The pace of new infections in India suggests it will pass Brazil as the second hardest-hit country after the U.S. within days.

Key Developments:

• Global Tracker: Cases surpass 26.9 million; deaths exceed 880,700
• Covid is making it harder for California to see blackouts coming
• Harris says she won’t take Trump’s word on vaccine
• Here’s how airlines can attract passengers again: Joe Nocera
• Vaccine tracker: Where are we in the race for protection?

Subscribe to a daily update on the virus from Bloomberg’s Prognosis team here. Click CVID on the terminal for global data on coronavirus cases and deaths.

NYU Suspends At Least 20 Students for Breaking Virus Rules (3:10 p.m. NY)

New York University has suspended more than 20 students for violations of rules to curb the spread of the coronavirus, the school announced on Twitter.

“Please don’t be the next,” the school said a tweet Saturday evening. “Avoid parties and bars. Wear a mask. Keep your distance.”

Colleges and universities around the country are struggling to rein in outbreaks since the start of classes this year -- and some are turning to punishments. Northeastern University in Boston dismissed 11 freshmen late last week and did not refund their $36,500 tuition, the university said.

California Cases Steady (2:10 p.m. NY)

California reported 4,905 new virus cases on Sunday, down from yesterday but still slightly above the 14-day average of 4,891. There have been 732,144 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the state, according to the health department’s website. The number of deaths increased by 66 to 13,709, below the 14-day average of 113.

Ireland Cases Surge (1:47 p.m. NY)

Ireland recorded another 138 new cases, with about half the new infections in Dublin, according to health authorities. That pushed the weekend total to almost 370, the worst weekend figure since early May.

France Spread ‘Worrying’ (1:34 p.m. NY)

France reported 7,071 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, showing the pandemic is continuing to progress at a “worrying” pace, the health ministry said in a statement Sunday. The death toll in rose by just 3 to 30,701 since the start of the outbreak.

“The virus circulation is particularly active among young adults,” probably for lack of respect of health measures, the ministry said. Those aged over 65, who are more at risk, are much better abiding by rules, which could explain the weaker virus circulation, it said.

The number of new cases has multiplied by 12 since early July, while testing has more than doubled in the period, the ministry said. Some 4.9% of the tests carried out in the past week were positive.

Mexico Registers 59% More Excess Deaths (1:10 p.m. NY)

Mexico reported excess deaths of 122,765 from March to August, a 59% increase from what was expected, as the coronavirus put the country fourth on the global list of Covid-19 fatalities.

The data from the National Center for Preventive Programs and Disease Control, or Cenaprece, takes into account the total number of deaths, regardless of the cause, general director Ruy Lopez said at a press conference Saturday night, according to national newspaper Reforma. Mexico has registered more than 67,000 virus-related fatalities.

“There is still a significant portion of other deaths that can be associated with Covid, but not registered in the surveillance system, but also due to other causes,” he said.

Virus Fatigue Is Risk, Ex-FDA Head Says (1:03 p.m. NY)

“Pandemic fatigue” is an additional risk as the U.S. heads into the fall and winter, when infectious diseases traditionally spread more readily, former Food and Drug Administration head Scott Gottlieb said.

A vaccine is unlikely to be available for widespread use this year, and more than 20% of the U.S. population could be infected with Covid-19 by year-end based on current spread rates, Gottlieb said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday.

“People are exhausted,” he said. “People have been social distancing and wearing masks and staying home for a long period of time right now. Small businesses are hurting.”

Arizona Cases, Deaths Drop (1 p.m. NY)

Arizona reported 250 cases, a 0.1% rise to 205,766. The average daily increase over the past week has been 0.3%. Cases spiked on Thursday by 1,091.

Positive-test results remained lower, at 4% after three straight days in double digits last week. The Arizona Department of Health Services recorded 14 new deaths, down from 36 the previous day, bringing the statewide toll to 5,221.

New York Rise Slows (12:10 p.m. NY)

New York’s recent increase in infections eased, to 729 after three consecutive days of more than 800. Although state officials have expressed concern, the recent increases never rose above a daily 0.2% -- the same percentage reported on Sunday. Another nine people died, Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a statement.

Cuomo said hospitalizations had fallen to 410, the lowest since March 16, four days before he declared a state lockdown at the start of the nation’s outbreak. He said Sunday also marked the 30th consecutive day with a transmission rate under 1%. Neighboring New Jersey has now reported three straight days above that number, which measures how many people one virus-positive person infects.

Cuomo again urged New Yorkers to be vigilant over Labor Day, a concern shared by Trump administration officials and states around the nation.

“Our actions today determine the rate of infection tomorrow, so as the Labor Day weekend continues, I urge everyone to be smart so we don’t see a spike in the weeks ahead,” he said in a statement.

Florida Cases, Deaths Slow (11:50 a.m. NY)

Florida reported 646,431 cases on Sunday, up 0.4% from a day earlier, compared with an average daily increase of 0.6% in the previous seven days. Deaths among Florida residents reached 11,849, an increase of 38, fewer than the 61 reported the previous day, according to the state health department report, which includes data through Saturday.

U.K. Cases Increase by the Most in More Than 3 Months (11:10 a.m. NY)

New infections in the U.K. rose by 2,988, health authorities reported on Sunday. That’s a 64% jump from the previous day and the biggest daily increase since late May, when the country was under lockdown. Two more people died after testing positive, bringing the total number of fatalities to 41,551 out of 347,152 cases. The new surge in cases is coinciding with millions of children going back to school and a government effort to convince people to return to work.

Italy’s Cases Slow; Economy Recovering (11 a.m. NY)

Italy reported 1,297 new coronavirus cases on Sunday. This is the smallest increase in five days amid lower than usual testing at the end of the week. Finance Minister Roberto Gualtieri said in an interview earlier Sunday that the country’s economic rebound in the third quarter will be stronger than initially expected.

Israeli Death Toll Tops 1,000 as Government Weighs Restrictions (9:50 a.m. NY)

Israel’s Covid-19 death toll passed 1,000 and the government is considering locking down places with the highest infection rates, chiefly ultra-Orthodox Jewish and Arab towns. The religious Jewish political parties, which form a significant part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition, are putting pressure on the government to come up with less restrictive measures, local media reported.

U.S. Cases Rise by Almost 45,000, in Line With Recent Days (7 a.m. NY)

The U.S. added 44,737 cases on Saturday, a 0.7% increase that matches the average daily rise over the previous seven days, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg. Deaths in the U.S. climbed to 188,535.

North Dakota, West Virginia, Hawaii, Missouri and South Dakota led the list, recording gains of 2% or more, according to the count of the latest 24-hour period.

Berlusconi in ‘Delicate Phase’ but Doctor Is Optimistic (6:30 a.m. NY)

The 83-year-old former Italian prime minister is responding to treatment for Covid-19, but remains in a “delicate phase,” Dr. Alberto Zangrillo said on Sunday. Zangrillo said he was “cautiously optimistic” about Berlusconi’s recovery, but he didn’t want to declare victory as Berlusconi is considered to be vulnerable to the disease because of his age and other health issues, such as heart problems that required him to use a pacemaker.

Working From Home Could Knock 1% Off of U.K. GDP (6 a.m. NY)

PwC has said the cost of working from home during the pandemic could knock 1% off the U.K.’s GDP. The accountancy firm warned that with thousands of office staff staying at home, there would be a knock-on effect on other workers, according to a PwC report cited by the The Sunday Times. Jonathan Gillham, PwC’s chief economist, said that smaller British towns and cities stood to benefit, but that overall continued home-working would hurt the economy.

Iran’s Daily Death Toll Jumps (5:15 p.m. HK)

Iran’s daily fatalities from the virus jumped to 139 from 110 a day earlier and the overall death toll reached 22,293. The number of new cases rose by 1,992 to 386,658, according to the latest Health Ministry data. Some 334,000 patients have recovered from the virus and 3,722 are in critical condition.

Hong Kong Cases Rise by Double Digits, Most in a Week (5:10 p.m. HK)

Hong Kong reported 15 new local coronavirus cases Sunday, the first double-digit increase in the tally in seven days. Seven of the cases are of unknown origin and five of them were new infections discovered from the government’s mass testing program. The city also reported six imported cases.

Indonesia Cases Exceed 3,000 for Fifth Day (5:06 p.m. HK)

Indonesia recorded more than 3,000 new cases for a fifth consecutive day as infections in the capital city and the country’s most popular tourist destination surged. The health ministry reported 3,444 Covid-19 cases in the 24 hours to midday Sunday, with 85 more deaths.

Bali had more deaths in the first week of September than the entire month of August. The disease has infected a total of 194,109 people in the world’s fourth most-populous nation and killed 8,025.

China’s Sinovac Giving Vaccine to Employees (5:05 p.m. HK)

Sinovac Biotech Ltd. has been giving employees and their families a coronavirus vaccine that the Chinese company is developing, Reuters reported, citing Chief Executive Officer Yin Weidong. The company has received emergency approval to carry out the inoculations and more than 90% of company’s employees and family remembers have received the vaccine, Reuters said.

German Infection Rate Climbs (5 p.m. HK)

Germany’s infection rate increased to the key threshold of one for the first time in six days. The reproduction number -- the average number of people infected by one person with the virus – rose to 1.0 from 0.85 the previous day, according to the latest report from the RKI public health institute.

There were 775 new cases in the 24 hours through Sunday morning, taking the total to 251,058, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That’s just over half of Saturday’s increase of 1,443, though in line with a trend for fewer cases being reported on Sundays. At the peak of the pandemic in the spring, Germany registered almost 7,000 new infections a day.

Hong Kong Local Cases Rise (4:48 a.m. HK)

Hong Kong reported 15 new local cases Sunday, the first time a double-digit tally has been registered in seven days. Seven of the cases are of unknown origin and 5 of them were new infections discovered from the government’s mass testing program. The city also reported six imported cases. Authorities plan to arrange a one-off virus test for approximately 7,000 inmates after two positive cases were found among prisoners recently.

U.K. Must Keep Quarantine Measures: Raab (4:08 p.m. HK)

The U.K. must keep quarantine measures on travelers from some countries until the system is safe, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told Sky News. Testing on arrival at airports is under constant review, but it isn’t a “silver bullet” to allow travel to resume freely, he said.

India Cases Continue to Surge (1:45 p.m. HK)

India reported the biggest daily increase in cases on Sunday, according to the latest data release by the government, as it emerges as the new global epicenter. The country added 90,632 cases in 24 hours, pushing the total to 4.11 million and rapidly approaching Brazil, home of the world’s second-highest tally of infections. More than 70,600 people have died from the novel pathogen in India.

The country is mounting an aggressive testing campaign, though the testing rate remains low compared with other hard-hit countries. Recently cases have spread from the densely populated urban centers to the vast rural hinterland where the majority of its 1.3 billion population lives and medical resources are sparse.

Korean Restrictions Get Results (9:45 a.m. HK)

Three weeks after South Korea imposed the country’s strictest-yet social distancing measures, the country reported 167 new coronavirus cases, a recent low and the fourth consecutive day of fewer than 200 new infections. The rules for the greater Seoul area, where the outbreak has been most severe, curtailed services at restaurants and coffee shops and closed fitness centers and in-person cram schools. The government on Friday extended those restrictions until Sept. 13 at the earliest.

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