The pandemic of the new coronavirus has claimed at least 517,416 lives worldwide since China officially reported the outbreak of the disease in December, according to a report by AFP based on official sources Thursday at 9: 00 PM Belgian time.
More than 10,769,890 cases of infection have been officially diagnosed in 196 countries and territories since the start of the epidemic, of which at least 5,454,100 are now considered cured.
This number of diagnosed cases, however, reflects only a fraction of the actual number of infections. Some countries test only severe cases, others use the tests primarily for tracing purposes, and many poor countries have limited testing capacity.
Since Wednesday's 9:00 PM count, there have been 4,735 new deaths and 193,254 new cases worldwide. The countries with the highest number of new deaths are Brazil with 1,038 new deaths, Mexico (741) and the United States (740).
The United States, which recorded its first coronavirus-related death in early February, is the most affected country in terms of both deaths and cases, with 128,421 deaths and 2,713,195 cases. At least 729,994 people were reported cured.
After the United States, the most affected countries are Brazil with 60,632 deaths for 1,448,753 cases, the United Kingdom with 43,906 deaths (313,483 cases, not updated since Wednesday 19:00 GMT), Italy with 34,818 deaths (240,961 cases), and France with 29,875 deaths (202,785 cases).
Among the hardest-hit countries, Belgium is the one with the highest number of deaths in relation to its population, with 84 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by the United Kingdom (65), Spain (61), Italy (58), and Sweden (54).
China (excluding the territories of Hong Kong and Macao) officially counted a total of 83,537 cases (3 new between Wednesday and Thursday), including 4,634 deaths (0 new), and 78,487 recoveries.
Europe totalled 197,991 deaths (2,709,250 cases) on Thursday at 9:00 PM, the United States and Canada 137,102 deaths (2,817,838 cases), Latin America and the Caribbean 119,171 deaths (2. 665,100 cases), Asia 35,804 deaths (1,363,670 cases), the Middle East 16,801 deaths (782,654 cases), Africa 10,414 deaths (421,862 cases), and Oceania 133 deaths (9,519 cases).
This assessment was carried out using data collected by AFP offices from the competent national authorities and information from the World Health Organization (WHO). Due to corrections made by the authorities or late publication of the data, the 24-hour increase figures may not correspond exactly to those published the day before.
The Brussels Times
