As global infections top 6 million, LA suspends testing after riots rock city


The number of coronavirus cases globally topped more than 6.1 million as deaths rose to at least 372,116, a tally from Johns Hopkins University shows.

Cases in China had the biggest increase since May 11, the country’s National Health Commission reported.

As demonstrations erupted in major U.S. cities across the nation in response to the death of unarmed black man George Floyd, peaceful protests turned ugly as demonstrators set fires, looted stores and clashed with riot police. The destruction prompted Los Angeles to suspend coronavirus testing Saturday afternoon due to safety concerns.

“We have been notified that all #COVID-19 testing centers throughout LA will be closed until further notified. A troubling consequence of social breakdown prompted by excessive use of force resulting in the death of another unarmed African American man, Mr. George Floyd,” according to a tweet by Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley Thomas.

This is CNBC’s live blog covering all the latest news on the coronavirus outbreak. This blog will be updated throughout the day as the news breaks. 

  • Global cases: More than 6.1 million
  • Global deaths: At least 371,995
  • U.S. cases: More than 1.78 million
  • U.S. deaths: At least 104,381

The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Russia reports more than 9,000 new cases

China says U.S. ‘addicted to quitting’ after Trump says it will withdraw from WHO

09:08 a.m. (London time): China has said the U.S. is “addicted to quitting” following President Donald Trump’s announcement last Friday that the U.S. will leave the World Health Organization (WHO), Reuters reported.

Speaking to reporters Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian characterized the U.S.’ behavior as selfish and said that the international community disagreed with its stance. — Holly Ellyatt

Health experts are worried about a rise in coronavirus cases in the Southern Hemisphere

2:30 p.m. (Singapore time) — Health experts warn that cooler weather conditions in the winter could trigger a more intense transmission of Covid-19 cases, saying that it’s “very likely” the disease will show a similar seasonal pattern to other coronaviruses.

Marc Lipsitch, professor of epidemiology at Harvard, has said that while he anticipates a slight decline in the contagiousness of the coronavirus in warmer, wetter weather, “it is not reasonable to expect these declines alone to slow transmission to make a big dent.”

In winter, however, Lispitch said he did have reason to believe Covid-19 “may transmit somewhat more efficiently” when compared to summer. — Sam Meredith

Cases in China the biggest increase since May 11

11:30 a.m. (Singapore time) — China reported 16 new cases as of May 31, the biggest rise since May 11, according to Reuters. That brought its total to 83,017 cases. There were no new deaths. 

China’s National Health Commission reported another 16 asymptomatic cases. — Weizhen Tan

Recent economic trends could signal a potential recovery

3:45 p.m. ET — Though the U.S. economy suffered a significant downturn amid the coronavirus pandemic, recent data across multiple business sectors indicates that things are beginning to look a little bit brighter.

As states move forward in their reopening progress, more Americans are traveling, buying homes and eating out at restaurants, indicating that some of the hardest-hit industries are starting to revive.

With consumers returning to familiar routines, it could be a sign that the economy is beginning to recover from the outbreak’s devastating impact.Five charts that illustrate these recent trends can be found by clicking here. –Hannah Miller

Even as they ask for more, states are reluctant to spend virus aid

10:27 a.m. ET — Uncertainty and fear among amid the coronavirus pandemic have Americans hoarding cash and putting off spending, sending the savings rate to historic levels. The personal savings rate hit a record 33% in April, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis said Friday.

Turns out, they’re not the only ones reluctant to open up their wallets.  

Many states haven’t spent the federal funds they received more than a month ago to help with soaring coronavirus-related costs, the Associated Press reported. Their unwillingness to part with the aid is complicating governors’ claims that they need hundreds of billions more to weather the crisis.

“If I knew today that another billion dollars was coming to Rhode Island to help solve our budget deficit, I’d spend the $1.25 billion now,” Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo told AP. When asked about other states that have started spending the aid, she said: “They’re taking a gamble, and I’m just not ready to do that yet.” —Terri Cullen

The University of Michigan takes steps to bring students back on campus

University of Michigan

tiny-al | Getty Images

9:44 a.m. ET — The University of Michigan told CNBC it is taking steps to bring students back on campus this fall.

“The average student is very anxious to get out of mom and dad’s basement and come back to school,” President Mark Schlissel said.

As Jessica Dickler reports, Schlissel is “very optimistic” the school will be able to host what he called a “public-health-informed residential semester.” —Terri Cullen

Google alumni reunite to assist families with home learning

9:05 a.m. ET — Since Covid-19 hit, several ex-Google employees have digitally reunited with each other in efforts to assist families trying to school their children from home amid shelter orders.

“Many know that access to work at companies like Google begin at the youngest levels and are passionate about using their background and abilities to help others get there,” Fong said. “Also, many are now having kids so it’s also a personal interest area and they can understand the customer (parents and kids).”

One of them, Jonathan Rochelle, spent more than a decade at the company, where he led some of the company’s education efforts. The former employees and executives, which hail from Google, Youtube, Cloud and other areas of the company, are not only using their technical skills to connect parents, but they’re also fielding broader questions about what the future of education will look like. —Jennifer Elias

After recovering from Covid-19, Pure Storage CEO plots slow reopening of company offices

8:55 a.m. ET — Charlie Giancarlo, CEO of data center hardware maker Pure Storage, started the company’s earnings call on Thursday by saying he himself had contracted and recovered from the coronavirus. Analysts said they were glad he was feeling better.

In an interview with CNBC on Friday Giancarlo described his experience and said that the company will be cautious as it reopens offices to employees. He said he knows how bad the disease can be. —Jordan Novet

Read CNBC’s previous coronavirus live coverage here: EU asks U.S. to reconsider cutting ties with WHO as India extends lockdown in ‘containment zones.’

The Associated Press contributed to this blog.



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