WHO reports biggest single-day rise in global Covid-19 infections since pandemic started

Neighbours wearing masks to curb the spread of the new coronavirus wait in a line for a free meal at the Villa Maria del Triunfo district of in Lima, Peru, Wednesday, June 17, 2020. AP - Rodrigo Abd

The World Health Organization has recorded the highest increase in global cases in a single day, with the United States and Brazil accounting for almost half of the 284,196 new infections.

The WHO reported 69,641 new cases in the US, 67,860 in Brazil, 49,310 in India and 13,104 in South Africa. 

India, which is still months away from reaching its peak, has became the third country in the world to record more than 1 million coronavirus infections, behind the US and Brazil. 

Brazil saw its caseload double in less than a month, logging almost 40,000 new infections a day. Earlier this month the country surpassed 2 million Covid-19 cases.

Meanwhile Peru, which recently reviewed its Covid-19 data, increased its total death toll by 3,000 to more than 17,000 fatalities.

As long as #COVID19 is circulating, we are all at risk. That’s why we’re asking everyone to treat the decisions about where they go, what they do and who they meet with as life-and-death decisions – because they are. pic.twitter.com/ALeUcT1uv4

— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) July 25, 2020

The WHO on Friday said daily global deaths were also at their highest since April, rising by 9,753. Countries recording the largest increases in new deaths were:

• 3,876 in Peru
• 1,284 in Brazil,
• 1,074 in the United States
• 790 in Mexico
• 740 in India.

The health body also pointed to a rise in cases in Europe over the past two weeks, stressing that tighter measures may be needed to curb infections.

In a tweet Saturday morning, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged people in all countries to think carefully about their movements and behaviours, warning "everyone is at risk".

– With wires