Worldwide coronavirus cases cross 17.61 million, death toll over 679,000

At least 17,613,278 people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 679,105 people have died, a Reuters tally showed.

Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.

The World Health Organization referred to the outbreak as a pandemic on March 11.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

At least 4,577,808 cases of the highly contagious novel coronavirus have been reported in the United States and its territories while at least 153,882 people have died, according to a Reuters tally of state and local government sources as of August 1, 2020, 05:20 pm. The US diagnosed its first COVID-19 case in Washington state on January 20.

Likewise, Brazil follows the US with a total of 2,662,485 coronavirus cases with 92,475 death, according to Reuters’ interactive graphic tracking the global spread.

Likewise, India has the third-highest 1,638,870 coronavirus cases while 35,747 people have died.

The United States has reached an agreement with two major drug companies to secure plentiful supplies of a future vaccine against the coronavirus, as cases of the disease keep rising there and in other parts of the world.

AMERICAS

— US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said talks with the White House on a coronavirus aid bill were far from a deal on Friday, as federal unemployment benefits that have been an essential lifeline for millions of Americans expired.

— Two major drug companies will supply the US government with 100 million doses of an experimental vaccine, the Trump administration said on Friday, as the nation's top health agency predicted that fatalities would rise in the coming weeks.

— Mexico surpassed Britain as the country with the third-highest coronavirus death toll on Friday, as the pandemic reaches new milestones in Latin America and threatens to disrupt efforts to reopen the region's economies.

ASIA-PACIFIC

— Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte ordered his coronavirus task force to address the concerns of more than a million doctors and nurses who called for reviving strict lockdowns after a third day of record infections.

— Australia's second most populous state, Victoria, reported 397 cases of the new coronavirus on Saturday, down by more than a third from Friday, but authorities said they are considering further restrictions as numbers remain worrisome.

— South Korean authorities arrested the founder of a secretive Christian sect at the centre of the country's largest outbreak of COVID-19 infections on Saturday for allegedly hiding crucial information from contact-tracers and other offences.

— Japan's stately traditional kabuki theatre resumed performances after a five-month break, with musicians in masks, actors farther apart on stage and only half the usual number of seats.

EUROPE

— Russia's health minister is preparing a mass vaccination campaign against the coronavirus for October, local news agencies reported on Saturday, after a vaccine completed clinical trials.

— Poland reported its highest number of new cases for a third day in a row on Saturday with 658, the Health Ministry said.

— British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he would postpone the next stage of lockdown easing for at least two weeks due to a pick-up in infection rates.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

— Egypt reported 321 new COVID-19 infections on Friday, the health ministry said, the lowest figure since May 3.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

— Sanofi SA and GlaxoSmithKline Plc said on Friday they are in advanced discussions to supply up to 300 million doses of an experimental COVID-19 vaccine for the 27-country European Union.

— Merck & Co said on Friday it plans to advance an antiviral treatment for COVID-19 into large studies in the coming weeks.

ECONOMIC FALLOUT

— More than half of the roughly 9 million British employees who were put on furlough during the lockdown have already returned to work, the Resolution Foundation think tank estimated on Saturday.

— Chile's President Sebastian Pinera announced $4.5 billion in additional stimulus spending to help soften the blow of the pandemic.

— Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd said it will offer a voluntary scheme to its Hong Kong-based pilots who are approaching retirement age to leave the group early, in a continued effort to cut costs amid the pandemic.