THE World Health Organisation reported a record 212,326 new Covid-19 coronavirus cases in the 24 hours ended early Saturday, the first infection total to top 200,000.
The WHO has reported more than 163,000 new cases every day for the past week, led by a rise in the Americas.
The Americas region – chiefly the US and Brazil – account for 61 per cent of all new cases, followed by Southeast Asia, which made up 12 per cent of the daily infections.
Europe, once an epicentre for the outbreak, represented 9.3 per cent, the WHO daily report showed. Cases in the US and Brazil were 48 per cent of the global total.
The Americas make up 51 per cent of all cases, or 5.58 million of 10.92 million, followed by Europe with 25 per cent and the Eastern Mediterranean, including the Middle East, with 10 per cent.
The WHO total often lags behind tallies from John Hopkins University, which showed 11.13 million cases as of midday Saturday. – BLOOMBERG