Global cases top 7 million

The total number of cases worldwide has topped 7 million, while global deaths surpassed 403,000 — just as some countries are ease social restriction measures to restart battered economies.

In South Korea, there has been a recent uptick in the number of new cases after movement restrictions were relaxed. They have been traced to nightclubs, religious gatherings and a logistics center.

In the U.S., White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci has said the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. appears to be going in “the right direction” despite a few “blips.” New York saw its lowest daily death toll in eight weeks on Thursday and the number of daily deaths related to Covid-19 have been on a slow, steady decline from a high of nearly 800 people every day. 

All 50 states eased some quarantine restrictions ahead of the Memorial Day holiday on May 25, and crowds of people, some without masks, have been seen at protests in recent weeks. U.S. cases are just now starting to rise as research shows that it can take anywhere from five to 12 days for people to show symptoms from the coronavirus.

Fauci said he has “no doubt” that Americans who aren’t wearing face masks, especially in large crowds, are increasing the risk of spreading the coronavirus.

The coverage on this live blog has ended — but for up-to-the-minute coverage on the coronavirus, visit the live blog from CNBC’s U.S. team. 

• Global cases: More than 7 million 
• Global deaths: At least 402,699
• U.S. cases: More than 1.94 million
• U.S. deaths: At least 110,503

The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Italy’s economy is expected to contract by 8.3{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} in 2020, the country’s statistics agency Istat said Monday, saying that it expected further revisions as the economic impact from the virus becomes clearer.

The country’s economy was already in stagnation territory at the end of 2019, “with few recovery signals coming from industrial production and external trade at the very beginning of 2020,” Istat said, and that was before the coronavirus struck in February.

A strict lockdown implemented by the government has had “a deep impact on the economy influencing production, investment and consumption decisions and very negatively affecting the labour market” as well as international trade, hitting Italian exports, Istat said.

The stats bureau said its predictions rest on “the hypotheses that there will not be a second wave of contagion, the economic policy provisions will prove to be effective and the monetary policy will remain accomodative avoiding turbulence in the financial markets and (a) credit crunch.” — Holly Ellyatt

09:30 a.m. London time: Poland will close 12 coal mines for three weeks from Tuesday in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus among miners, Deputy Prime Minister Jacek Sasin said on Monday, Reuters reported.

The miners will reportedly be paid during that time, Sasin said, adding that there is no threat to coal deliveries. The move comes after coronavirus outbreaks among miners, in the coal-mining Silesia region. — Holly Ellyatt

10.30 a.m. Singapore time — New Zealand’s health ministry said on Monday that the last of its coronavirus patients has recovered. It has been 17 days since the last new case was reported in New Zealand, added the health ministry.

The move prompted Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to lift all coronavirus containment measures from Tuesday, though border closure restrictions will remain.

The coronavirus was first reported in the country on February 28 and it has since logged 1,154 cases.

New Zealand implemented strict movement control measures to contain the virus that were relaxed in May. — Huileng Tan  (updated entry at 11:30 a.m. Singapore time)

10:20 a.m. Singapore time  — The total number of coronavirus globally has topped 7 million, as the number of deaths has surpassed 402,000, according to Johns Hopkins University, which uses official government data.

The outbreak started in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year and has since spread globally, hitting the world economy as countries impose largescale lockdowns in order to contain transmission of the virus. — Huileng Tan

9:45 a.m. Singapore time — South Korea is witnessing an increase in the number of coronavirus cases after social distancing measures were relaxed.

Over the weekend, more than 100 new cases were recorded while 38 new cases were posted on Monday. Recent cases have been traced to nightclubs, religious services and a logistics center. Most of them are from the Greater Seoul area.

South Korea was one of the worst hit Asian countries early in the pandemic but took active and intensive steps to contain the outbreak, winning the country praise internationally. — Huileng Tan

7:14 p.m. ET — American Airlines recently outlined severance packages for high-level employees, director-level and above, should they get laid off when the terms of federal aid expire this fall, sources told CNBC. Airlines are prohibited from laying off or cutting the pay rates of employees through Sept. 30 under the terms of $25 billion in aid meant to maintain payroll through a sharp drop in demand because of the coronavirus pandemic.

American, United, Delta, Southwest and others are urging employees to take voluntary separation agreements, an effort to avoid involuntary cuts.  American last month rolled out buyouts and early retirement options for employees as it seeks to reduce headcount in those departments by about 5,000 people, or 30{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f}.

The deadline to apply is late Wednesday and employees were told last month that they wouldn’t receive a severance if they are laid off when the federal aid terms expire this fall. The high-level employees, a group that recently took pay cuts, could get nine months of pay and just over two years of health-care coverage, a person familiar with the matter said. — Leslie Josephs

6:56 p.m. ET — As the U.S. lifts further coronavirus restrictions, more Americans are traveling, eating out and buying homes. This return to familiar routines could signal a turnaround for an economy battered by the pandemic and a step closer to greater normalcy. To check out five charts that illustrate new trends in economic progress, click here. –Hannah Miller

1:22 p.m. ET — Ahead of New York City’s reopening on Monday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced new coronavirus testing measures for protesters engaging in large-scale demonstrations in the city.

“We are concerned that those protests may have increased the spread of the virus,” Cuomo said at a press briefing Sunday. The city plans to open 15 testing locations dedicated to protesters.

New York City will also conduct 35,000 tests a day to monitor reopening progress, and Cuomo said there will be a lag in the data to show whether the protests have caused a spike in cases.

“I would act is if you were exposed and I would tell people you’re interacting with, ‘assume I am positive for the virus,'” Cuomo said in addressing those who have participated in protests.

Concern about protests comes as the state reported its lowest percentage of positive coronavirus tests since March 16, prior to New York closing down. Out of 60,435 tests conducted Saturday, about 1{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} were positive for the virus, according to Cuomo.—Hannah Miller

12:26 p.m. ET — Italy reported 53 new Covid-19 deaths, compared to 72 on Saturday, the Civil Protection department said, according to a Reuters report. The total death toll since the outbreak emerged on Feb. 21 now stands at 33,899. 

Italy reported 197 new cases, down from 270 the day before. Italy now has the seventh-highest global tally with a total number of confirmed cases at 234,998, Reuters reported.

Italy lifted restrictions on inter-regional travel, as well as travel to and from other European countries last week. —Melodie Warner

11:40 a.m. ET — The coronavirus pandemic may well prove to be a major turning point for environmental, social and governance investing as the outbreak alters society’s values.

The ESG investing approach, which evaluates a company’s environmental, social and governance ratings alongside traditional financial metrics, was already coming off a banner year, reports CNBC’s Pippa Stevens. 

So far this year, U.S.-listed sustainable funds are seeing record inflows, despite the market turmoil. And analysts and investors say that the pandemic will further prioritize investing with a conscience. 

Conscience aside, these funds are also attracting record levels of cash because they’re proving that they can offer comparable, if not market-beating, returns. 

The Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF (NULG) has returned 10{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} this year, for example, while the iShares ESG MSCI USA ETF (ESGU) — the largest of its kind with more than $7.1 billion in assets under management — has returned 0.6{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} year to date. The S&P 500, by comparison, is down roughly 1{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} for the year. —Melodie Warner

10:36 a.m. ET — Casinos reopening across the country have had to balance their guests’ desire for entertainment with safety precautions designed to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Nevada and Missouri allowed casinos to reopen this past week. Both massive Las Vegas resorts and smaller, local casinos have implemented measures like adding barriers between slot machines, restricting the number of people at card tables and limiting access to bars.

With guests clamoring to visit casinos, the measures have been deemed necessary for allowing customers to have fun in a safe, healthy environment. —Hannah Miller

9:58 a.m. ET — More than half of Americans planning travel won’t be buying trip insurance, according to a survey by ValuePenguin. That’s despite the havoc Covid-19 lockdowns worldwide wreaked on spring and summer getaways this year.

Most of those planning and booking travel will visit family and friends, and trips may, therefore, be shorter, cheaper and less pressing to protect. But even 23{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} of planners buying coverage is good news for travel insurers. —Kenneth Kiesnoski

9:48 a.m. ET — UK drugmaker AstraZeneca has approached Gilead about a potential merger, a healthcare deal that would be the largest on record, sources told Bloomberg.

AstraZeneca reportedly asked Gilead last month about a merger but did not provide specifics on the transaction, according to anonymous sources.

The companies are not in formal discussions and Gilead is apparently not interested in selling or merging with another large pharmaceutical firm. An AstraZeneca spokesperson told Bloomberg that the company does not comment on “rumors or speculation.”

AstraZeneca is valued and $140 billion and Gilead, which is working on an antiviral drug called remdesivir to treat coronavirus patients, is worth $96 billion. —Emma Newburger

9:32 a.m. ET — New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the city is no longer under curfew after peaceful protests on Saturday.

The city was initially put under curfew last Monday from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. and has since been under an 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. curfew amid ongoing demonstrations over the death of George Floyd while being subdued by police officers in Minnesota last month.

“Yesterday and last night we saw the very best of our city,” the mayor wrote in a tweet. “Tomorrow we take the first big step to restart.”

 

De Blasio had initially said the curfew would remain in place throughout the weekend.

The city enters phase 1 of reopening on Monday after the coronavirus outbreak shut down the city in March. Some retail, construction and manufacturing businesses are authorized to reopen with under 50{3c4481f38fc19dde56b7b1f4329b509c88239ba5565146922180ec5012de023f} occupancy and social distancing measures. Businesses like salons, gyms and restaurants will not reopen until phase 2. —Emma Newburger

9:18 a.m. ET — Hospitals across the United States are desperately trying to ramp up volume after seeing far fewer patients than usual for months.

Many hospitals canceled or delayed elective procedures in March and April to make space for Covid-19 patients. Because of that, hospitals were losing millions of dollars per day by just staying open. In April, the American Hospital Association estimated that hospitals were bleeding more than $50 billion per month.

The situation is improving as patients are starting to reschedule their procedures and overall volumes are increasing as the country reopens.

Some health systems can afford the hit, particularly if there aren’t major flareups of Covid-19 in the fall and winter that will force them to suspend normal operations again. But others won’t make it and industry experts expect to see more bankruptcies and consolidation in the months to come. —Christina Farr

9:01 a.m. ET — Malaysia said it would reopen nearly all economic activity and allow interstate travel starting June 10, Reuters reported.

The government will ease restrictions on social, education and religious activities in phases with health guidelines in place, and businesses will be allowed to return to normal operating hours. Entertainment centers, sports that involve close contact and events involving a large gathering of people will also not be allowed.

Malaysia had gradually reopened businesses over the past month with social distancing protocols, after shuttering all non-essential businesses and schools, banning public gatherings and restricting travel on March 18. —Melodie Warner

Read CNBC’s previous coronavirus live coverage here: Amazon workers sue the company; tennis star Djokovic chafes at US Open restrictions.