Coronavirus live updates: California reports ‘deadliest day’ yet, global lockdowns ease

States are weighing how and when to re-open their economies as medical experts warn against returning too soon and risking another spike in cases. With another 4.4 million Americans filing jobless claims, pressure continues to mount on Congress to support the economy.

This is CNBC’s live blog covering all the latest news on the coronavirus outbreak. All times below are in Eastern time. This blog will be updated throughout the day as the news breaks. 

• Global cases: More than 2.6 million
• Global deaths: At least 186,372
• US cases: More than 854,400
• US deaths: At least 47,178

The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Nearly 450 emails and passwords linked to World Health Organization officials and others working on the coronavirus response were leaked online this week, the organization said in a statement. WHO said scammers have been impersonating officials in emails targeted toward the general public in order to obtain donations. The organization is now migrating affected systems to a more secure authentication system, the organization said.

The leaked credentials did not put any WHO systems at risk because the data was not recent, the organization said. However, WHO said the attack did impact an older system used by current and retired staff as well as partners. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization has seen a dramatic increase in the number of cyber attacks directed at its staff, and email scams targeting the public at large. There have been five times the number of cyber attacks directed at the organization now than reported during the same period last year.

“It is deeply disappointing that as we and partners work to save lives from the virus, we are under attack in this way as well as on social media. This has to stop,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote on Twitter. —Noah Higgins-Dunn

Meatpacking plants responsible for 10% of beef production and 25% of pork production been affected by closures, according to the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.

As the coronavirus spreads among meatpacking workers who often work in close proximity, concerns are growing about potential meat shortages — and the nation’s overall food supply. 

“When they have to start closing these plants down or they have to spread the lines out for social distancing or slow them down in some ways, which we’re calling for as it relates to these line speed waivers, it will in fact create some shortages in the stores,” UFCW President Marc Perrone said. “I don’t think there’s any doubt about it.”

The union, which represents 80% of beef and pork production workers, said that 13 packing and food processing workers have died after contracting Covid-19 and 5,000 have tested positive or been exposed. —Amelia Lucas

The Czech government will cancel restrictions on free movement as of Friday and allow groups of up to 10 people to meet in public as it scales back measures to fight the spread of the new coronavirus, Health Minister Adam Vojtech said.

The government had earlier banned movement aside from work, family visits and trips to nature as well as meetings of more than two people in public.

The country also lifted a previous ban on travel abroad. —Reuters with contribution from CNBC

California reported 115 deaths due to Covid-19 over the past 24 hours, marking the “deadliest day” so far in the state’s fight to contain the coronavirus, Gov. Gavin Newsom said.

“Yesterday was the deadliest day for this virus in this state. 115 human beings lost their lives, families torn apart,” he said. “It’s also a reminder we’re not out of the woods yet.”

That’s an 8.5% increase compared to deaths from the day before, Newsom said, adding that there was a 5.6% increase in the number of people who tested positive. The number of hospitalizations and people in intensive care due to Covid-19 both dropped, he said. 

Separately, Newsom signed an executive order that prevents debt collectors from garnishing CARES Act stimulus checks. The order is effective immediately and is also retroactive.

“If you’re a debt collector and you did garnish those contributions, those checks, you gotta give them back,” Newsom said at a press briefing Thursday. Newsom said that checks can be garnished if an individual owes child, spousal or victim support. —Will Feuer, Hannah Miller

Toyota Motor Corp said it expects to gradually resume North American production starting May 4 and will impose significant new safety procedures after it halted operations in March because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The largest Japanese automaker said it expects production will be slow next month. The company added it is not yet clear when the industry will be allowed to resume operations in Mexico. Toyota will add temperature checks for all plant employees, personal protective gear, use “touchless” entrances and exits and will even bar non-emergency use of elevators.

“There is no going back to normal for the foreseeable future,” said Toyota Motor North America chief administrative officer Chris Reynolds, who said he expects production will ramp up later in May “to meet consumer demand.” —Reuters

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa said the government will allow a partial reopening of the economy on May 1, with travel restrictions eased and some industries allowed to operate under a five-level risk system.

Ramaphosa said the National Coronavirus Command Council decided restrictions will be lowered from level 5 to level 4 from next Friday. International borders will remain closed while travel will be only allowed for essential services. —Reuters

European Leaders agreed to revamp its long-term budget and set up a massive recovery fund to tackle the impact of the coronavirus and help rebuild the 27-nation bloc’s ravaged economies.

“There is only one instrument that can deliver this magnitude of task behind the recovery and that is the European budget clearly linked to the recovery fund,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.

However, deep differences remain over the best way to achieve those goals, as hard-hit countries like Spain and Italy are urgently in need of funds. They lack confidence that relatively wealthier northern EU partners who have suffered less from the disease are willing to take swift, sweeping measures backed by real economic firepower. —Associated Press

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker was expected to extend his state’s stay-at-home order, which was to expire on April 30, to stem the spread of Covid-19, local media reported.

The state saw 2,049 new cases on Wednesday, the largest one-day increase since the outbreak of the pandemic began.It was unclear how long the extension will be, but several media outlets reported that it could go until May 30 or longer. —Reuters

JPMorgan Chase is warning some customers that even if fresh funds for the federal small business relief program are approved, the money won’t last and they might be better off applying elsewhere.

JPMorgan on late Wednesday emailed thousands of customers who have applied to the Paycheck Protection Program to say that while Congress is headed towards replenishing the effort, the bank is concerned “that funds could run out again quickly,” according to a copy obtained by CNBC.

The bank, which has been inundated with requests for more than $40 billion in loans since April 3, has placed customers in one of four categories indicating the progress of applications. Those furthest back in line are in Stage 1, and they received the starkest language:

“Your application is still in Stage 1, with an extremely large volume of applications ahead yours,”  the bank said. “We wanted to give you this information, so that you can decide if you would like to try applying with another lender.” —Hugh Son

Dubai allowed cafes and restaurants to resume business, and shopping malls to be opened partially from 12 p.m until 10 p.m, but with a maximum capacity of 30%, Dubai’s media office announced in a statement.

The statement added that it would also allow resuming public transportation services including subways starting April 26. —Reuters

In an effort to provide greater transparency around business loans issued through the CARES Act, the Federal Reserve announced it will provide detailed information on who gets the money. Monthly releases will include names and details of participants in each facility, the amounts borrowed and interest charged, and costs, revenues and fees for each program.

“The Federal Reserve is committed to transparency and accountability by providing the
public and Congress detailed information about our actions to support the economy during this difficult time,” Chair Jerome H. Powell said in a statement. Controversy erupted earlier this week when it was revealed that multiple publicly traded companies had received funding through loan programs intended for small businesses. —Jeff Cox

Stocks were taken for a wild ride that showed just how important finding a treatment for the coronavirus is for Wall Street. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slashed a 400-point gain and nearly went negative after The Financial Times said  — citing documents accidentally published by the World Health Organization — that Gilead Sciences’ drug remdesivir did not improve patients’ condition or reduce the coronavirus pathogen in their bloodstream. Those findings, according to the report, came from a clinical trial in China. 

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite cut their gains on the report, while Gilead was briefly halted for volatility. —Fred Imbert, Thomas Franck

Peru’s reported coronavirus cases have rapidly increased this week and topped 20,000, doubling in nine days and continuing to disrupt the economy of the world’s No. 2 copper producer.

The health ministry says it expects patient numbers to peak within days or in the following week.

Peru recorded its first coronavirus case on March 6 and took 25 days to reach 1,000 cases. It took only 14 more days to reach 10,000 cases on April 14, according to a Reuters tally. Cases doubled again to 20,914 confirmed cases on Thursday. Peru has a total of 572 deaths.

Peru has the second highest number of cases in South America after Brazil, despite a tough lockdown aimed at halting the spread of the coronavirus. —Reuters

Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania are seeing surges in claims for unemployment benefits as workers and state health officials in those states struggle to strike a balance between economic wellbeing and safety from the coronavirus.

Hawaii, Kentucky, Michigan, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Georgia have seen the most concentrated spikes in jobless claims since mid-March, when employers began to lay off droves of workers. Here are all the states getting hit the hardest. —Thomas Franck, John Schoen

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo tore into Sen. Mitch McConnell over the Senate Republican leader’s support for letting states declare bankruptcy as they grapple with the coronavirus pandemic.

“This is one of the really dumb ideas of all time,” Cuomo, a Democrat, said during a press conference in Albany. 

“You will see a collapse of this national economy” if states such as New York and California declare bankruptcy, Cuomo said. “So just don’t.”

On Wednesday, McConnell, of Kentucky, told radio host Hugh Hewitt that he supports allowing states to declare bankruptcy rather than getting federal money to cover budget shortfalls as tax revenue dives. —Kevin Breuninger, Jacob Pramuk

Gilead Sciences said that a draft document showing disappointing results from a closely watched clinical trial of the company’s treatment for the coronavirus contained “inappropriate characterizations” and that the study’s findings were “inconclusive.”

Shares of the biotech firm fell 4% in intraday trading after the Financial Times reported that antiviral Remdesivir did not improve Covid-19 patients’ condition or reduce the virus’ presence in the bloodstream in a phase 3 clinical trial, citing a draft document that was accidentally published by the World Health Organization.

“We regret that the WHO prematurely posted information regarding the study, which has since been removed. The investigators in this study did not provide permission for publication of results,” a Gilead spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC. 

“Furthermore, we believe the post included inappropriate characterizations of the study. Importantly, because this study was terminated early due to low enrollment, it was underpowered to enable statistically meaningful conclusions,” according to Gilead. “As such, the study results are inconclusive, though trends in the data suggest a potential benefit for remdesivir, particularly among patients treated early in disease.” —Berkeley Lovelace Jr. 

Sales of both newly built and existing homes tanked in March, as potential buyers hunkered down and potential sellers pulled their homes from the market, both watching their economy in free fall from the coronavirus.

Now, suddenly, buyer demand at least may be climbing back.

Pending home sales — a measure of signed contracts, not closings — are about 32% lower annually now, according to research by Zillow. But the week-over-week change in pending sales turned positive in the week ending April 15. Pending sales were up 6.2% week over week as of the seven days ending April 19.

Zillow also noted that web traffic on for-sale listings and requests to connect with real estate agents have grown in recent weeks as well. While web traffic to Zillow listings in some markets is still way down from a year ago, the national total jumped 13% annually for the week ending April 13. In 30 of the 35 largest metro areas, web traffic to for-sale listings was higher annually during the second week of April. Traffic was still lower in Pittsburgh, Detroit, Philadelphia, Boston and New York City. —Diana Olick

The antiviral medicine remdesivir from Gilead Sciences failed to speed the improvement of patients with Covid-19 or prevent them from dying, according to results from a long-awaited clinical trial conducted in China. Gilead, however, said the data suggest a “potential benefit.”

A summary of the study results was inadvertently posted to the website of the World Health Organization and seen by STAT on Thursday, but then removed. 

“A draft document was provided by the authors to WHO and inadvertently posted on the website and taken down as soon as the mistake was noticed. The manuscript is undergoing peer review and we are waiting for a final version before WHO comments,” said WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic. —STAT News

Britain’s health minister Matt Hancock promised to expand coronavirus testing to all those considered key workers after the government faced criticism for failing to roll out mass checks.

Previously only healthcare employees and those working in nursing homes have been able to get tests.

The government classifies as key workers people working in jobs such as teachers, government employees and delivery drivers.

“We can make it easier and faster and simpler for an essential worker in England who needs a test to get a test,” Hancock told reporters. “This all applies to essential worker households too. It is all part of getting Britain back on her feet.” —Reuters

While the number of Americans without jobs keeps rising, more states are stepping in to provide expanded unemployment benefits. 

About 4.4 million new workers applied for unemployment during the week ending April 18, bringing the total number of out-of-work Americans to 26.5 million over the past five weeks, the Labor Department reported. 

“With the nation unable to mount the public health response needed to re-open businesses, unemployment benefits are carrying the weight and serving as the last line of defense for millions of struggling families,” says Andrew Stettner, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation and a leading unemployment expert.

But there is some good news. As of April 22, 44 states have started making $600 weekly payments from the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program that was put in place as part of the $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package Congress passed in late March, a Department of Labor spokesperson tells CNBC Make It. —Megan Leonhardt

Deaths from the Covid-19 epidemic in Italy climbed by 464 on Thursday, against 437 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, but the daily tally of new infections declined to 2,646 from 3,370 on Wednesday.

The total official death toll since the outbreak came to light on Feb. 21 now stands at 25,549, the agency said, the second-highest in the world after that of the United States.

The number of confirmed cases was 189,973, the third-highest global tally behind those of the United States and Spain.

People registered as currently carrying the illness fell to 106,848 from 107,699 on Wednesday, a fourth consecutive daily decline.

For the first time, the civil protection unit published data on how many people had been tested for the virus so far in Italy, putting the number at 1.053 million, out of a population of around 60 million. —Reuters

An estimated 13.9% of the New Yorkers have likely had Covid-19, according to preliminary results of coronavirus antibody testing released by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

The state randomly tested 3,000 people at grocery stores and shopping locations across 19 counties in 40 localities, Cuomo said. 

“What we found so far is that the state-wide number is 13.9% tested positive for having the antibodies. What does that mean? It means these were people who were infected and who developed the antibodies to fight the infection,” he said. —Noah Higgins-Dunn

The owner of a Georgia barbershop said she is not planning to open her doors Friday, when the state lifts coronavirus-related restrictions for businesses like hers.

“I’m definitely not opening this Friday. I don’t have a calendar date for opening,” Diane Fall said Thursday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

Fall, who owns Maxim Barbers in Decatur, Georgia, said the task of gathering personal protective equipment and other supplies needed to meet safety requirements by Friday is too onerous.

“Yesterday I went on the internet just looking for capes because they’re saying you have to use one cape for each client. I looked for disposable capes, there’s nothing out there,” Fall explained. “You have to have an infrared thermometer to take the temperature of your employees and each client who walks in the door. This can’t happen overnight.” 

“I’m just not prepared to do this,” she added. —Kevin Stankiewicz

Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s oldest brother died from the coronavirus earlier this week, the senator said.

Donald Reed Herring, 86, had tested positive for Covid-19 about three weeks prior to his death Tuesday night, according to The Boston Globe, which first reported Herring’s death.

Herring had been hospitalized for pneumonia in February and was later moved to a rehabilitation center, where other coronavirus cases were present, according to the Globe.

“I’m grateful to the nurses and frontline staff who took care of him,” Warren, D-Mass., said on Twitter later Thursday morning. “But it’s hard to know that there was no family to hold his hand or to say ‘I love you’ one more time—and no funeral for those of us who loved him to hold each other close.” “I’ll miss you dearly my brother,” Warren said. —Kevin Breuninger

House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline said most mergers should be banned while the coronavirus pandemic devastates businesses across industries.

The Rhode Island Democrat is seeking to include the merger ban in the next stimulus deal, according to his prepared remarks for an event Thursday with the Open Markets Institute, a group that advocates for strong enforcement of antitrust laws. Under Cicilline’s proposal, only mergers of businesses that have declared bankruptcy or are about to fail should be allowed during the national emergency.

Ciclline’s subcommittee is currently investigating Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google parent company Alphabet as part of a review of digital markets. He originally planned to wrap up the investigation and publish a report by early April, but has acknowledged the pandemic has shifted that timeline. Cicilline previously told CNBC the report would lead to regulatory proposals to make sure the digital marketplace is operating fairly. —Lauren Feiner

Delta and United have reported their first quarterly losses in more than five years. Their competitors are also expected to release dismal results in the coming weeks. The next few months look even more painful for the sector as the coronavirus pandemic saps air travel demand during what is normally the most lucrative time of year.

Air travel has dropped by more than 95% as the Covid-19 pandemic spread around the U.S. Now, states hard-hit by the pandemic like New York are extending stay-at-home advisories for the next several weeks and canceling events through June in New York City, a sign that business isn’t even close to returning to normal yet. Bleak economic data and a rising unemployment rate are raising doubts about when travelers will return.

“People are fearing for their homes, not their holidays,” said Rob Morris, global head of consultancy at Ascend by Cirium, a U.K.-based aviation consulting firm. —Leslie Josephs

Malaria deaths could double in sub-Saharan Africa this year compared to 2018 because of the coronavirus, according to a statement from the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused severe disruptions in delivering insecticide-treated nets and reduced access to antimalarial medicines, according to a new modeling analysis from WHO.

WHO said countries should move quickly in delivering malaria prevention and treatment tools, and maintain essential malaria control services in a safe manner.

Sub-Saharan Africa represents only a small proportion of total global cases of Covid-19, though cases are increasing every week, according to WHO. The health organization said countries in the region have “a critical window of opportunity” that should be used to minimize disruptions in malaria prevention.

The region accounted for approximately 93% of all malaria cases and 94% of deaths in 2018, according to WHO’s “World malaria report 2019.” —Hannah Miller

Confirmed coronavirus cases in New York City are just “the tip of the iceberg,” New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot said Thursday, adding that “close to a million” residents have probably been exposed to Covid-19.

More than 147,000 people in New York City have so far tested positive for Covid-19, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

“That really I think is the tip of iceberg for a number of different reasons,” Barbot said at a news briefing. “New Yorkers have been heeding to our advice that if they have mild symptoms, at this point in time, when you’ve got community-wide transmission, having a test result isn’t going to change what we’re going to tell you to do.” —Will Feuer, Jasmine Kim

The Small Business Administration issued new guidance that makes it “unlikely” that big publicly traded companies will be able to access the next round of funding for the U.S government’s small business relief program. The update comes after a public furor that large companies tapped the facility, known as the Paycheck Protection Program, for hundreds of millions of dollars in loans while thousands of small businesses have yet to receive funding.

Companies applying for the coronavirus relief funds must certify that the loans are necessary and that they cannot tap other sources of funding, the SBA said. By definition, public companies have access to the capital markets. For instance, Shake Shack said it returned the $10 million it got through the PPP after it sold $150 million in new shares.

“Borrowers still must certify in good faith that their PPP loan request is necessary,” the SBA said. “It is unlikely that a public company with substantial market value and access to capital markets will be able to make the required certification in good faith, and such a company should be prepared to demonstrate to SBA, upon request, the basis for its certification.” —Hugh Son

The House plans to pass a $484 billion coronavirus relief bill to replenish a small business aid program, fund hospitals, and expand testing. 

The measure’s expected approval in the afternoon will send it to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature. The Senate cleared the legislation on Tuesday in a unanimous vote.

Congress will pile more money into an unprecedented rescue of the economy and health care system that will approach $3 trillion in total with the plan’s passage. The cash injection into the small business loan program, designed to keep employees on payroll during the pandemic, will follow a government report Thursday showing more than 26 million people filed unemployment insurance claims over the latest five-week period. Read more about what’s included in the relief bill here. —Jacob Pramuk

Sales of new U.S. single-family homes dropped by the most in more than 6.5 years in March and further declines are likely as the novel coronavirus outbreak batters the economy and throws millions of Americans out of work.

The Commerce Department said on Thursday new home sales fell 15.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 627,000 units last month. The percentage decline was the largest since July 2013. February’s sales pace was revised down to 741,000 units from the previously reported 765,000 units.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new home sales, which account for about 10% of housing market sales, plunging 15% to a pace of 645,000 units in March. —Reuters

As human telehealth visits are forecast to surge past 1 billion this year, the veterinary industry is following suit, at least for now, in order to reduce the spread of coronavirus.

On March 24 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it would temporarily suspend a requirement for veterinarians to examine animals in person before beginning telemedicine in order to “limit human-to-human interaction and potential spread of Covid-19.”

The decision came at a good time: On Wednesday the first cases of positive coronavirus tests in U.S. domestic pets, in two New York area cats, were confirmed, along with four more tigers and three lions at the Bronx Zoo. On April 6 the first tiger to test positive for the virus, at that same zoo, tested positive.

The measure, along with an April 30 extension of federal social distancing guidelines, has resulted in a widespread migration to virtual animal care. —Sully Barrett

Stocks rose slightly as oil prices recovered even more ground after a historic plunge while Wall Street digested the latest U.S. unemployment and earnings data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 83 points, or 0.4%. The S&P 500 gained 0.4% while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3%.

West Texas Intermediate futures for June delivery jumped 21% to $16.63 per barrel as traders increased bets on U.S. production cuts. WTI also rallied on Wednesday. —Fred Imbert, Thomas Franck 

Billionaire investor Leon Cooperman said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that the coronavirus crisis will “likely” change capitalism forever and that taxes will need to be raised soon.

“When the government is called upon to protect you on the downside, they have every right to regulate you on the upside,” Cooperman said. “So capitalism is changed.”

The chairman and CEO of Omega Family Office said the country is shifting to the left and that taxes will have to go up regardless of who wins the presidential election in November. 

“Quickly if Biden wins, slowly if Trump wins, but taxes have to go up. So things like carried interest, capital gains taxes, the ability to roll over real estate sales tax-free, all that stuff is going to have to be eliminated. For the good, by the way,” Cooperman said. —Jesse Pound

Expedia is raising $3.2 billion in new capital as the coronavirus pandemic has stalled travel around the world.

The company is raising $1.2 billion in a private placement of perpetual preferred stock and $2 billion in new debt financing. Funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management and Silver Lake will provide the equity investment and will each get a spot on the company’s board, according to Expedia. The funding is expected to close May 5.

Expedia said it expects the new funds to strengthen its financial flexibility and liquidity position. —Lauren Feiner

Gap said its existing cash and the cash it expects to bring in might not be enough to sufficiently fund its operations, as its stores remain temporarily shut because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

The apparel company said in a securities filing that it must take further actions to find liquidity over the next 12 months, such as additional job cuts and new debt financing. 

It added that beginning this month, it stopped paying rent on its temporarily shuttered stores, which amounts to roughly $115 million in monthly expenses in North America. —Lauren Thomas

Oil jumped more than 20%, accelerating Wednesday’s rally, as the Street eyed continued production cuts and rising U.S.-Iranian tensions.

West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, rose 21.4%, or $2.95, to trade at $16.73 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, traded 9.4% higher at $22.29 per barrel.

Thursday’s move higher comes after WTI jumped 19.1% a day earlier for one of its best days on record. —Pippa Stevens 

Indonesia will temporarily ban domestic air and sea travel starting Friday, barring a few exceptions, to prevent further spread of coronavirus, Transport Ministry officials said.

The ban on air travel will be in place until June 1, said Novie Riyanto Rahardjo, the ministry’s director general of aviation. The ban on travel by sea will be in place until June 8, sea transportation director general Agus Purnomo said.

Cargo transportation is exempted from the ban, the officials said.

The government is banning Indonesia’s traditional annual exodus for Muslim holidays. —Reuters

Target has seen a sharp increase in online sales, as shoppers try to limit time inside stores or avoid the trips altogether during the coronavirus pandemic, CEO Brian Cornell said.

Since its fiscal first quarter began Feb. 2, Target’s same-store sales have risen more than 7%. The gain, which compares with an increase of 1.5% in the fiscal fourth quarter, is the result of a doubling of its online sales, partially offset by declines inside its nearly 1,900 brick-and-mortar stores. 

In an interview with “Squawk Box,” Cornell said Target is trying to figure out if customers’ new shopping patterns are here to stay.

“We are spending a lot of time trying to understand how the pandemic is going to change the future of how American consumers shop, how they live, how they work, the things that they value,” he said. “But it’s been really hard to predict week by week.” —Melissa Repko

Tyson Foods is shuttering two pork processing plants, including its largest in the United States, after employees tested positive for Covid-19, further tightening meat supplies after other major slaughterhouse shutdowns.

The closures are limiting the amount of meat the U.S. can produce during the outbreak and adding stress on farmers who are losing markets for their pigs.

Lockdowns that aim to stop the spread of the virus have also prevented farmers around the globe from delivering food products to consumers. Millions of laborers cannot get to fields for harvesting and planting, and there are too few truckers to keep goods moving.

Tyson Foods, the largest U.S. meat supplier, said it will indefinitely suspend operations at its largest pork plant in Waterloo, Iowa, after operating at reduced capacity. —Reuters

South Korea’s ruling party and the government on Thursday agreed to provide cash handouts to every household, not just to families below the top 30 percentile of income as previously announced, the finance ministry said.

The ministry separately said the government will issue additional bonds to fund the cash handout. —Reuters

Australia will push for an international investigation into the coronavirus pandemic at next month’s annual meeting of the World Health Assembly, the decision-making body of the World Health Organization, its prime minister said, according to Reuters.

Australia wants a review into the WHO’s response to the pandemic and would like to see the organization strengthened. —Holly Ellyatt

Spain has reported that 440 people have died from in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths to 22,157, its health ministry said.

The death toll has risen slightly from Wednesday, when 435 deaths were reported. The total number of cases has reached 213,024, up 4,635 from the previous day. —Holly Ellyatt

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the end of the pandemic is not yet in sight and people will have to live with the virus “for a long time.”

Speaking to Germany’s Parliament, the Bundestag, Merkel said, “We are not living in the final phase of the pandemic, but still at the beginning.”

“We have won time,” Merkel said, according to a Reuters translation, adding that this had been used to bolster Germany’s health-care system. —Holly Ellyatt

Euro zone business activity hit another record low during April in a new sign that the coronavirus pandemic is causing severe economic damage across the region.

The IHS Markit Purchasing Managers’ Index, which measures the services industry and manufacturing, dropped to 13.5 in April, according to preliminary data. In March, the same index had already recorded its biggest ever single monthly drop to 29.7. A contraction in PMI numbers — a figure below 50 — indicates a likely fall in economic growth overall. 

“April saw unprecedented damage to the euro zone economy amid virus lockdown measures coupled with slumping global demand and shortages of both staff and inputs,” Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit, said in a statement. —Silvia Amaro

Read CNBC’s coverage from CNBC’s Asia-Pacific and Europe teams overnight here: China will give WHO more money; Spain’s daily death toll steady