TOPLINE
While many of the countries hit early on in the coronavirus pandemic are seeing infections wane, the number of cases worldwide is multiplying faster than ever before, with the virus’s growing presence in parts of the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Latin America driving this new peak.
QUITO, ECUADOR – JUNE 01: Doctors extract samples with a swab on June 1, 2020 in Quito, … [+]
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KEY FACTS
Twice as many countries have reported an increase in virus cases over the past two weeks than have reported declines, according to a report by the New York Times.
The global infection rate hit its highest point on May 30 when 134,064 new cases were reported for a single day; more than 100,000 cases worldwide continue to be reported each day.
America currently has the highest death toll—topping 100,000 and comprising more than a quarter of total known coronavirus deaths—but has seen its daily death rate dip below 1,000 recently and is currently in the process of reopening.
Mexico and Brazil are now seeing a record number of virus-related deaths, and Brazil has surpassed the U.S. in its daily death toll, as it struggles without a health minister and with a total of 30,000 deaths.
Pakistan now has more recorded cases than China, where the virus originated, with at least 85,264 reported cases and 1,770 virus-related deaths.
Other burgeoning hotspots include Peru, where there are over 170,000 confirmed cases, Egypt, whose cases significantly increased to 27,536 this week, and Bangladesh, where a deadly cyclone last month compounded coronavirus damage in the country.
Key number
There have been more than 6.5 million cases of coronavirus reported worldwide and over 386,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
key background
Over the past week, protests have swept across all 50 U.S. states and in cities worldwide like Paris, Amsterdam, London, Berlin, Milan, Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, Toronto, among others, in response to the death of George Floyd in the U.S. and other instances of police brutality. Health experts fear that these large gatherings may lead to an accelerated spread in Covid-19.
key quote
“I think there’s going to be a lot of challenges coming out of the events of the past week,” former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC’s Squawk Box on Monday. “One of them’s going to be that probably chains of transmission will have gotten lit by large gatherings. I don’t think there’s really a question about that.”
further reading
Experts Fear Minneapolis Protests Will Trigger Spike In Coronavirus Cases (Forbes)
Brazil Counts Most Daily Coronavirus Deaths Since Pandemic Began (Forbes)
Why America’s Nurses Were Not Prepared For The Coronavirus Pandemic (Forbes)
Source: Forbes Business
