Coronavirus: latest news from around the world

By Helen Regan, Adam Renton, Steve George, Jessie Yeung, Tara John and Ed Upright, CNN

Updated 8:06 p.m. ET, October 2, 2020
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2:19 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

Multiple officials, including Joe Biden, may have been exposed to Trump, Sanjay Gupta says

U.S. President Donald walks to the White House residence on the South Lawn of the White House on October 1.
U.S. President Donald walks to the White House residence on the South Lawn of the White House on October 1. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

With three people in the White House -- President Trump, first lady Melania Trump, and top aide Hope Hicks -- now testing positive for coronavirus, questions are arising as to how many people within the administration may have been exposed to the virus.

The administration needs to "trace their contacts and start quarantining people who have been in close contact with somebody," said CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta. "And that's going to be a very important policy, here, within the West Wing."

Figuring out who has been exposed includes many criteria, he added: how close were they in contact? How long did the contact last?

Joe Biden potentially exposed: Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, "may have been far enough away on that stage" on Tuesday night during the presidential debate with Trump, said Sanjay.

"And I know that they came in from different areas, probably did not spend time close together. But he is going to need to be tested as well. All the campaign staffers. It's going to be critical."

Even if they weren't in close contact and stood far apart from each other, "we are dealing with the leaders of the country, here," he said.

The timeline of exposure and infection: Infection can also take a while to set in after the moment of exposure, he added.

"People will say, well, I tested negative the next day, after the exposure. Therefore, I am good to go. That is not the case. You could have exposure today, test negative tomorrow, the next day, and so forth for several days. And then, suddenly, test positive."

Hear more from Dr. Gupta:

2:00 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

US reports more than 43,000 new Covid-19 cases 

From CNN's Alta Spells

The United States recorded 43,752 new Covid-19 infections and 857 new deaths on Thursday, according to Johns Hopkins University.

At least 7,277,759 Covid-19 cases, including 207,789 virus-related fatalities, have now been reported in the US since the start of the pandemic.

The totals include cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases. 

CNN is tracking the US cases:

1:54 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

Trump's diagnosis "is not entirely unexpected," Dr. Sanjay Gupta says

US President Trump has tested positive for coronavirus -- and he belongs to an at-risk population, said CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

"This is one of the great concerns," Gupta said. "He's a vulnerable person because of his age and because of preexisting conditions, and this is the sort of thing that you know his medical team is going to have to be watching out for, and see if he does have symptoms and how quickly these symptoms may occur and what to do about it.

He cautioned that it was "tough to speculate" what might happen, and that Trump will likely recover from the disease. The fact Trump and Melania are going into isolation suggests they are asymptomatic at the moment, he added

"It is something that, you know, is not entirely unexpected," he said. "It is not surprising (with) the contagiousness of this, and several people now in the West Wing that the President had regular contact with that had this disease."

Hear more:

1:47 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

Trump's doctor releases statement after the President and first lady test positive for Covid-19

The White House has released a statement from President Donald Trump’s physician confirming the President and First Lady Melania Trump's diagnosis.

In a letter dated October 1, White House doctor Sean P. Conley said he received confirmation that the President and first lady had tested positive for coronavirus.

He said "they are both well at this time, and they plan to remain at home within the White House during their convalescence."

Conley added that he expects Trump to "continue carrying out his duties without disruption while recovering."

1:42 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

Dow futures fall more than 400 points after Trump says he tested positive for coronavirus

From CNN's Laura He

US stock futures plunged Friday after President Donald Trump said that he and First Lady Melania Trump have tested positive for coronavirus

  • Dow futures were last down 439 points, or 1.6%
  • S&P 500 futures were down 2%
  • And Nasdaq futures were down 1.8%

Stock futures were lower earlier as news broke that top Trump aide Hope Hicks tested positive for the virus, and that Trump and his wife would be tested and would start a "quarantine process."

But those losses quickly accelerated after Trump said those tests were positive.

Read the full story:

1:44 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

Melania Trump tweets "we are feeling good" after Covid-19 diagnosis

First lady Melania Trump has tweeted about her positive Covid-19 test results.

“We are feeling good & I have postponed all upcoming engagements," she said. "Please be sure you are staying safe & we will all get through this together."

 

1:59 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

President Donald Trump tweets he and first lady Melania Trump test positive for Covid-19

From CNN's Kaitlan Collins, Betsy Klein, Jim Acosta and Paul LeBlanc

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport for the first presidential debate on Tuesday, September 29.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport for the first presidential debate on Tuesday, September 29. Evan Vucci/AP

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump tested positive for coronavirus, the President announced early Friday morning.

"Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!" Trump tweeted shortly before 1 am Friday.

The President had said earlier in the night that he planned to quarantine.

"Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid 19. Terrible! The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine process!" Trump tweeted Thursday night.

Hicks has traveled with the President multiple times recently, including to the debate in Cleveland on Tuesday, and was seen boarding Marine One, along with several other of the President's closest aides -- Jared Kushner, Dan Scavino and Nicholas Luna -- none of whom wore masks, on Wednesday as Trump was heading to a campaign rally in Minnesota.

Read the full story here.

Watch:

1:10 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

US President Donald Trump and first lady test positive for coronavirus

From CNN's Brian Rokus

US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk to the White House residence as they exit Marine One on September 11.
US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk to the White House residence as they exit Marine One on September 11. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have both tested positive for Covid-19, the President said in a Twitter post Friday.

"Tonight, FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!," Trump said.

The President had said earlier that he planned to quarantine after his top aide Hope Hicks tested positive for Covid-19.

12:42 a.m. ET, October 2, 2020

Australia announces limited travel bubble with New Zealand

From CNN's Chandler Thornton

Australian Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack speaks to the media during a news conference at Parliament House in Canberra, on Friday, October 2.
Australian Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack speaks to the media during a news conference at Parliament House in Canberra, on Friday, October 2. Lukas Coch/AAP Image/Reuters

Australia has established a limited travel bubble with New Zealand, according to Australian Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack.

Speaking in a news conference on Friday, McCormack said "the establishment of a travel zone between Australia and New Zealand has been finalized."

McCormack announced the first phase of the arrangement, where "quarantine-free travel will be possible" from New Zealand to New South Wales and to the Northern Territory. The travel bubble is currently only one way from New Zealand to NSW and the Northern Territory.

The new travel bubble will go into effect October 16, McCormack said.

"The Department of Health has undertaken a public health risk assessment of Covid-19 in New Zealand, which indicated that New Zealand posed a low risk of Covid-19 transmission to Australia," McCormack added.

The Deputy Prime Minister said this new travel bubble will free up space for nearly 325 passengers a week to enter quarantine in Sydney so that more Australians abroad can return home.