COVID-19: Death toll in US surpasses 7,000

The death toll from the novel coronavirus in the U.S. hit 7,163 on Saturday, with 1,105 more confirmed deaths, according to data by Johns Hopkins University.

The number of infected cases rose to 278,568, while 9,920 have recovered from the virus.

The U.S. has become the country with the most confirmed coronavirus infections followed by Spain, Italy and Germany after the virus emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December.

It has since spread to at least 181 countries and regions.

The global death toll from the virus has surpassed 60,800, with more than 1.1 million confirmed cases, and nearly 234,000 recoveries, according to the U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.