Elon Musk's wild testing ride

Covid-19 death toll mounts in U.S. as winter looms Hong Kong tightens rules as local transmissions rise Fannie, Freddie to extend Covid-19 loan flexibilities Elon Musk's wild testing ride    The tweet came at nearly 1 a.m. Eastern time, from Tesla chief Elon Musk. The billionaire automaker and rocket builder had taken four rapid coronavirus tests made by diagnostics company Becton, Dickinson & Co., half of which returned a positive result and half a negative one. "Something extremely bogus is going on," he tweeted. Musk, who reports cold-like symptoms, may well have Covid-19. But it's still too early to say and much remains unclear about how and why he was tested. Experts say there are a couple of potential explanations for the discordant results, including that he could be at the start or end of an infection, or that he got a false positive result. Tesla CEO Elon Musk  Photographer: ODD ANDERSEN/AFP The latter would make the 49-year-old Musk, who has a history of Covid denial, the celebrity messenger for a concern about rapid tests. Known as antigen tests for the viral markers they detect, they have become the subject of increasingly prominent accuracy worries. Unlike gold-standard polymerase chain reaction tests, antigen tests are fast, cheap and don't call for bulky lab equipment -- but they also don't perform as well. Conveying those scientific nuances during a pandemic when everyone wants clean, simple answers, is a hard thing to do. The conspiratorial bent of Musk's tweets, which go on to imply without evidence that false results could be driving the very real surge in U.S. Covid-19 cases, could do additional damage.--Emma Court Listen up Global Virus Report Card New Zealand is one of the countries that has been most successful in crushing the spread of the coronavirus. The WHO has asked former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark to co-chair an independent panel evaluating critical steps taken early in the pandemic. She spoke to senior editor Jason Gale about how different countries approached the virus. What you should read Vaccine Bursts Bubble of Concern Over Valuations Looking past 2020 has been winning strategy for investors. Struggling Zambia Squares Up to Bondholders Staring at Africa's first sovereign default since the pandemic struck. U.K. Curve Seen Pivoting as QE Shift Expected Government is pushing ahead with a record borrowing plan. Battered Bali Sees Flicker of Recovery  Governor looking at ways to reopen the paradise island to tourists. Santander's Job Losses Add to Wave of Cuts Spain has been hit particularly hard by the Covid-19 pandemic. Know someone else who would like this newsletter? Have them sign up here. Have any questions, concerns, or news tips on Covid-19 news? Get in touch or help us cover the story. Like this newsletter? Subscribe for unlimited access to trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and gain expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. Follow Us Get the newsletter You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Coronavirus Daily newsletter. Unsubscribe | Bloomberg.com | Contact Us Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022