Rolling updates on the latest developments and headlines from around the world on the Covid-19 pandemic.
By Gina Lee and Peter Nurse
(11: AM) ET Global cases top 3.5 million
Johns Hopkins University data said that there were 3,504,129 COVID-19 cases globally as of May 4th, with 247,126 deaths.
(11:08 PM ET) Gliead’s remdesivir could be in hospitals by this week
Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) could see its antiviral drug remdesivir in hospitals, ready to administer to COVID-19 patients as soon as this week.
Chief Executive Officer Daniel O’Day made the announcement just a few days after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for the drug.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Trump said overnight that he was confident that a vaccine will be available by the end of the year, despite public health officials stating that a vaccine could take anywhere from a year to 18 months.
(11:04 PM ET) Hong Kong’s Exchange Fund reports $11.10 billion 1Q loss
Hong Kong’s Exchange Fund lost HK$86.1 billion ($11.10 billion) from its investments during the first quarter of 2020 due to the global stock market slump.
The loss is the fund’s biggest three-month loss in the 16 years it has been reporting its quarterly performance.