As many as 86.9 million (86,986,256) people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 1,879,134 have died, according to a worldodometer tally. It reported that there have been 61,685,856 cases of global recoveries. Coronavirus is continuing its spread across the world with over 86 million confirmed cases in 218 countries and more than 1.87 million deaths. The virus is surging in many regions and countries that had apparent success in suppressing initial outbreaks are also seeing infections rise again. The US recorded Tuesday 180,477 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours as the confirmed cases nation-wide crossed 20 million. It also recorded 1,903 virus-related deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. The tally showed that the confirmed cases nationwide reached 20,817,140 and at least 353,483 deaths across US, with the country remaining the world's worst hit by the pandemic. Furthermore there were a record 128,210 people currently hospitalized for coronavirus in the US, according to COVID Tracking Project. The US ranks first globally in the number of coronavirus cases and deaths. India and Brazil have the second and third highest case tallies, recording some 10.3 and 7.7 million cases respectively. Infections have been reported in more than 218 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019. Daily cases have now fallen in many European countries after steep rises in October. Lockdowns and other restrictions were reintroduced in some of the worst-affected regions to help bring numbers down. In Moscow, Russia reported 24,217 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 3,308,601 after it crossed the 3.3 million mark. Russia's coronavirus crisis center said 445 coronavirus patients had died in the last 24 hours and the overall national coronavirus death toll was at 59,951. They added 23,055 people recovered from the virus, raising the total number of recoveries to 2,685,723. The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have spread to Russia on Jan. 31, 2020 when two Chinese citizens in Tyumen (Siberia) and Chita (Russia Far east) tested positive for the virus. In Berlin, German health authorities reported on Tuesday 1,019 deaths and 21,237 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases said the country's death toll increased to 36,537 cases and the total confirmed cases those to 1,808,647. Germany responded to the second wave of the deadly pandemic by shutting hospitality businesses as well as leisure and sports facilities. Schools and non-essential shops have, however, remained open. In Brussels, total infections of coronavirus cases in Belgium on Wednesday increased to 652,735 with 1,848 new infections reported by Belgian health authorities. They reported 77 more deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours raising the total death toll to 19,827. In Amsterdam, The Netherlands has reported 56,440 new coronavirus cases in a week (Dec. 30- Jan. 52), raising the total infections to 834.064. The Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, in its weekly reports on Tuesdays, reported 621 more deaths from COVID-19 raising the total death toll to 11,826. In Vienna, Austrian authorities announced Wednesday that they recorded 2,469 new coronavirus cases raising the total number of confirmed infections to 371,740. More than 344,000 cases have recovered since the start of the pandemic, deaths have reached 6,525, said the country's Health Ministry. In New Delhi, India said on Wednesday that 264 people died due to COVID-19 while 18,088 new cases of the coronavirus were registered in the past 24 hours. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said that fatalities due to COVID-19 rose to 150,114 as the total number of positive cases mounted to 10,374,932. According to the ministry, 9,997,272 people recuperated from the pandemic as it spread to 35 states. India has the world's second-highest caseload, but daily infections have dipped steadily since hitting a peak in September. In Tokyo, Japan reported on Wednesday 4,786 daily cases of novel coronavirus, raising the nation's total number 255,790, the Health Ministry and local authorities said. The country's cumulative death toll rose by 115 and stood at 3,761. Tokyo added a record 1,591 new infections which brought the total cases in the Japanese capital to 66,343. In an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus variants, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said the government plans to declare a state of emergency for Tokyo and three surrounding prefectures. It had suspended new entries of non-resident foreign nationals from around the world to Japan through Jan. 31. In Seoul, South Korea reported 840 new coronavirus cases Tuesday, Yonhap reported in the past 24 hours, bringing the total caseload at 65,818, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Twenty people died in the past 24 hours raising the death toll to 1,027. Of the newly identified local infections, 263 cases were reported in Seoul and 269 cases in Gyeonggi Province that surrounds the capital. The government extended the current level 2.5 distancing measures in the capital area and Level 2 restrictions in the rest of the country until Jan. 17. South Korea is grappling to contain yet another wave of virus infections with the toughest social distancing rules banning gatherings of five or more people. Brazil has registered more than 7.7 million cases of the virus since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 195,725, according to ministry data. Brazil ranks third in terms of infection numbers globally, behind the United States and India. On fatalities, Brazil ranks second behind the US. Argentina, Colombia and Mexico have also recorded more than one million cases and all three countries are still seeing very high numbers of daily confirmed cases. Peru is also approaching the milestone of one million cases, although daily cases are falling. The country has one of the highest deaths rates in the world. Africa has recorded more than two and half million cases, but the true extent of the pandemic there is not known as testing rates are low. South Africa, with more than 800,000 cases and nearly 23,000 deaths, is the worst affected country on the continent. Morocco, Egypt, Ethiopia and Tunisia are the only other African countries to officially record more than 100,000 cases. — Agencies
