GENEVA – A total of 152 countries and regions have reported 167,511 confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) as of Monday morning, an increase of 13,903 infections compared to the previous day, according to a daily situation report released by the World Health Organization (WHO).
The global death toll from the pandemic of Covid-19 increased by 862 to 6,606 in the past 24 hours as of 10:00 CET Monday.
Outside China, 13,874 more cases were reported, bringing the cumulative number of infections to 86,434, among which 3,388 patients have died.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted more cases and deaths of Covid-19 have now been reported in the rest of the world than in China, stressing the necessity of testing and isolating cases in response to the pandemic.
In Europe, the epicenter of the Covid-19 pandemic, around 56,000 cases were reported by over 50 countries and regions as of Monday morning.
The most affected European countries with over 2,000 cases each -- Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Switzerland -- have reported nearly 45,000 infections in total as of Monday morning.
Besides, the report showed 83 countries and regions outside China have seen local transmission of Covid-19.
Travel restriction to EU proposed
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday she had proposed a temporary restriction on non-essential travel to the European Union (EU), as a measure to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
After a teleconference with leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) countries, von der Leyen said, together with the President of the European Council Charles Michel, that "we informed today our G7 partners that we propose to introduce a temporary restriction on non-essential travel to the European Union."
"There will be exemptions, for example for EU citizens coming back home, for healthcare workers, like doctors and nurses, but also scientists working on the solution of this health crisis," she said, adding "that should be in place for an initial period of 30 days."
The proposal is expected to be discussed by leaders of EU member states during a video conference on Tuesday.
Cases in US tops 4,600
The number of Covid-19 cases in US has topped 4,600 as of Monday night, an increase of more than 1,000 in the past 24 hours, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
A total of 85 deaths have been reported, more than half of which are from the state of Washington. And the state of New York has reported 10 deaths and California 7, according to the center.
US President Donald Trump said Monday the United States could be coping with Covid-19 by July or August and the country's economy "may be" heading toward a recession.
"Well, it may be," Trump said in a press conference at the White House while responding to a question about whether the country's economy is heading toward a recession.
However, he predicted growth would bounce back strongly.
"We're not thinking in terms of recession. We're thinking in terms of the virus," he said. "Once we stop, I think there's a tremendous pent-up demand both in terms of the stock market, in terms of the economy," he noted.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 2,997.1 points, or 12.93 percent, to 20,188.52. The Dow's breathtaking drop on Monday was the biggest since the Black Monday crash on Oct. 19, 1987 when the blue-chip index lost more than 22 percent.
The president also released guidelines calling for people to avoid gatherings of more than 10 people and to steer clear of eating and drinking at bars and restaurants. (Xinhua)
