COVID-19 , the disease caused by the coronavirus , was officially declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11.

More than 3.6 million cases of the virus have been confirmed worldwide, and more than 258,000 people have died from it, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University . Efforts to curb the outbreak have led to the global disruption of daily life and the economy, as schools and workplaces shutter in hopes of slowing transmission.

HuffPost reporters around the world are tracking the pandemic and the measures being taken to flatten the curve of transmission.

Read the latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic below. (To see the latest updates, you may need to refresh the page. All times are Eastern. For earlier updates on the pandemic, go here .)

U.S. Unemployment Rate Shoots Up To 14.7% in April 5/8/20, 8:40 a.m. ET

Unemployment in the United States has reached its highest levels since the Great Depression , a horrifying milestone that may take the country years to recover from.

Some 20.5 million jobs disappeared in the worst monthly loss on record, meaning that nearly all of the job growth since the 2008 recession has been lost in one month.

The new coronavirus has wrought economic devastation with stunning speed, considering the unemployment rate was just 3.5% in February. During the Great Depression, that figure reached nearly 25%.

In New York, the epicenter of the public health crisis, a statewide pause on eviction proceedings was enacted so families struggling the most do not have to pay rent during the crisis. Across the country, Americans have turned to food banks as they go weeks without paychecks.

Sara Boboltz

New York Extends Ban On Evictions Through August 5/7/2020, 1:19 p.m. ET

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced some extra protections for renters in his state on Thursday. They include a moratorium on evictions due to nonpayment of rent until Aug. 20, which extends the ban 60 days past its original end date in June. It applies to both residential and commercial tenants.

People literally are worried about being able to pay rent. You dont work for two months and that rent bill keeps coming in, he said at a press conference Thursday.

Cuomo added that he is banning any fees on late rent payments. Additionally, landlords must continue to let tenants dip into their security deposits to pay rent.

I hope it gives families a deep breath. Nothing can happen until Aug. 20, he said, noting they will continue to assess the situation between now and then.

Lydia OConnor

Nearly 3.2 Million More Americans Filed For Unemployment Last Week 5/7/20, 9:02 a.m. ET

Nearly 3.2 million laid-off workers in the U.S. applied for unemployment aid last week, bringing the total number of Americans who have filed unemployment claims since the coronavirus pandemic forced widespread business shutdowns to 33.5 million, The Associated Press reports.

One in five Americans who had been in the workforce as of February have now been laid off.

The pandemic has caused the countrys worst economic downturn in decades. The Department of Labors April jobs report, which will be issued Friday, is expected to be the worst one in 60 years. Economists predict the U.S. unemployment rate will reach at least 16%, the highest since the Great Depression.

In February, the unemployment rate had dropped to 3.5%, a 50-year low.

Read more here .

Marina Fang

UN Asks For More Money To Help Poor Countries Fight Virus 5/7/2020, 6:20 a.m. ET

The U.N. has increased the amount of money its asking for to fight the pandemic in poorer countries, from $2 billion to $6.7 billion. Humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock said that while the peak of the pandemic isnt expected to hit the worlds poorest countries for another three to six months, there is already evidence of job losses and disruption to food supply.

Unless we take action now, we should be prepared for a significant rise in conflict, hunger and poverty, he warned. The specter of multiple famines looms.

Since March 25, the U.N. has raised $1 billion to support efforts across 37 fragile countries, The Associated Press reports.

Liza Hearon

Trump Admin Shelves CDC Document Giving Guidance On Reopening Country 5/7/2020, 5:35 a.m.

The Trump administration has shelved a 17-page report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that gives guidance to local leaders on how to safely reopen public places like daycare centers and restaurants, The Associated Press reports .

The document was supposed to be published last Friday, but CDC officials were reportedly told it would never see the light of day.

The CDC is typically in charge of giving local governments advice during public health crises. But the Trump administration has sought to control the release of information during the coronavirus pandemic, and put the onus on local governments to control the disease.

Liza Hearon

Black People In UK More Than 4 Times More Likely To Die From COVID-19 5/7/20, 5:30 a.m. ET

Black women and girls are 4.3 times more likely to die from a coronavirus-related cause than their white counterparts, and Black men and boys are 4.2 times more likely than white men and boys, official data from the U.K. has revealed.

The figures, which have been adjusted for age, suggest that men and women from all ethnic minority groups except females with Chinese ethnicity are at greater risk of dying from COVID-19 compared with those of white ethnicity, HuffPost UK reports .

The U.K.s Office for National Statistics used data on death registrations up to April 17, combined with 2011 Census records, to model the impact coronavirus is having on different ethnic groups.

Concerns have been growing in Britain about the disproportionately high death rate among Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people, with the U.K. government being accused of having a blindspot in its coronavirus response.

Sara C. Nelson

Canadian Provinces Reopening Plan Allows For Hugging Loved Ones 5/7/20, 3:10 a.m. ET