The global death toll surpassed 600,000 on Saturday night, as the World Health Organization announced over a quarter of a million cases — a record number of new coronavirus cases globally for the second straight day.
The big picture: COVID-19 is continuing to spread nearly unchecked across the world, with the U.S. reporting the second the second-highest number of single-day cases on record.
By the numbers: More than 601,400 people have died from the virus and over 14.2 million have tested positive worldwide. More than 7.9 million have recovered.
- Per the WHO, 259,848 people around the world tested positive for COVID-19, surpassing the previous record set Friday of 237,743 new cases.
- Brazil has the world's second-highest number of deaths (over 78,700) and infections (2 million-plus) after the U.S., where there have been more than 139,900 deaths and over 3.69 million confirmed cases.
What's happening: The Canadian government denied the Blue Jays' request to play at their home field in Toronto, Ontario, this season over fears surrounding the surge in coronavirus cases in the U.S.
- Children and teenagers aged 10 to 19 can spread the coronavirus at least as effectively as those over the age of 20, a new study out of South Korea finds.
- India surpassed 1 million novel coronavirus infections on Friday, per Johns Hopkins. Schools, colleges, movie theaters, pools, religious gatherings and metro travel remain shut down across the country until at least the end of July.
- Hong Kong's secondary schools, primary schools and kindergartens will closed on Monday, per education secretary Kevin Yeung.
- Japan is reporting more novel coronavirus cases daily and surpassed 200 daily infections several times last week, per Johns Hopkins data.
- The WHO: "The greatest threat we face is not the virus itself," WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a Geneva briefing, per the New York Times. "Rather, it is the lack of leadership and solidarity at the global and national levels."
Between the lines: Policy responsesto the crisis have been every-country-for-itself and — in the case of the U.S. and China — tinged with geopolitical rivalry. But the scientific work to understand the virus and develop a vaccine has been globalized on an unprecedented scale.
Coronavirus symptoms include: Fever, cough, shortness of breath, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headaches, sore throat and a loss of taste or smell.
Editors note: The graphic includes "probable deaths" that New York City began reporting on April 14. This article has been updated with new details throughout. Check back for the latest.
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