Pakistan continued experiencing the deadly second wave of the coronavirus pandemic as 75 died of the infection during the last 24 hours, showed the latest data released by National Command and Operation Centre on Wednesday morning.

With the death toll climbing to 8,166, another 30 people died in Punjab and 27 in Sindh followed by six each in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Islamabad, four in Azad Kashmir and two in Balochistan.  

Meanwhile, the country also reported 2,829 new coronavirus cases most of which were from Sindh and Punjab, raising the overall number to 403,311. As a result, the pandemic-related figures for different regions currently stand at:

Sindh 175,642 cases and 2,962 deaths, Punjab 120,356 cases and 3,066 deaths, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 47,701 cases and 1,375 deaths, Islamabad 30,748 cases and 324 deaths, Balochistan 17,215 cases and 169 deaths, Azad Kashmir 6,982 cases and 173 deaths, Gilgit Baltistan 4,667 cases and 97 deaths.

As far as the active coronavirus cases are concerned, the tally has increased 49,780. This relatively less rise in the figures is due to the higher number of patients [2,079] recovering from the virus during the last 24 hours.

However, more new cases are being reported daily when compared with the recovery rate, which is obviously overburdening the fragile healthcare system.

A total of 2,810 people are currently receiving treatment in hospitals with 2,244 of them in a critical condition. Of those who are critically ill, 311 have been placed on ventilator.

Meanwhile, the number of patients recovering from the infection increased to 345,365 with the addition of 2,079 during the last 24 hours.

The authorities on Tuesday administered 35,197 more tests in their efforts to identify, isolate and trace new cases to control the infection rate, increasing the overall number to 5,584,976.

US deaths soar

The United States, the country hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic and in the throes of a surge in cases, on Tuesday registered more than 2,500 deaths in a 24-hour period, the highest total since late April, Johns Hopkins University said.

More than 180,000 new infections were recorded, according to real-time data provided by the Baltimore-based university at 8:30 pm (0130 GMT Wednesday).

The last time the daily death toll was higher than Tuesday's total of 2,562 was in late April, at the height of the pandemic's first wave. 

The number of hospitalizations in the United States hit 99,000 on Tuesday, a new record, according to the Covid Tracking Project. The situation is particularly dire in several Midwestern states, including Indiana and South Dakota.

Experts fear a new surge in the number of infections now that several days have passed since the Thanksgiving holiday, which saw millions of Americans travel to see loved ones despite recommendations to skip festive gatherings.

For now, the number of new daily infections is still high, but more or less consistent with the figures seen in recent weeks.

The United States regularly saw 2,000 deaths a day in the spring, but has hit the number several times in the past two weeks.

In total, the US now has registered more than 13.7 million coronavirus cases and more than 270,000 deaths.

Latest global developments
Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- Pfizer seeks EU approval -
Germany's BioNTech and US partner Pfizer apply for EU regulatory approval for their vaccine, with the bloc saying its health agency will meet by December 29 to consider the application.

- France sets out vaccination plan -
France aims to launch a major Covid-19 vaccination campaign between April and June next year with only the most fragile and exposed groups targeted at the beginning of 2021, President Emmanuel Macron says.

- Recovery in 2021? -
The OECD says thanks to vaccines now potentially only weeks away from distribution, the global economy may get back to pre-pandemic levels by the end of next year.

- Ireland leaves lockdown -
Dublin throngs with face-masked Christmas shoppers after Ireland ends a second partial coronavirus lockdown, allowing non-essential retail to resume after six weeks of tough restrictions.

- MP revolt -
As British MPs prepare to vote on replacing an England-wide lockdown set to expire at midnight, conservatives complain that under the planned new rules isolated hotspots could lead to entire counties coming under the strictest measures, even if their infection rates remain below the national average.

- Canada's economy roars -
Canada's economy rebounded at a record annualized pace of 40.1 percent in the third quarter after the country emerged from a lockdown, the government statistical agency says. However the upturn falls short of analysts' expectations.

- Cases top 63 million -
The virus has killed at least 1,468,873 people since the outbreak emerged in China last December, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP on Tuesday 1100 GMT.

More than 63,227,478 cases of coronavirus have been registered.

The US is the worst-affected country with 268,103 deaths, followed by Brazil with 173,120 deaths, India with 137,621 deaths and Mexico with 105,940 deaths.

- Gaza's Hamas leader positive -
The leader of Hamas in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, becomes the latest Palestinian official to contract the coronavirus, as it spreads rapidly across the enclave.

- Racer positive -
Racer Lewis Hamilton, who this season broke the record for the most Formula 1 wins, tests positive and will isolate, saying he is "devastated" at missing this weekend's Sakhir Grand Prix.

- Madrid's 'pandemic' hospital -
The Spanish capital inaugurates a huge, new hospital - The Isabel Zendal complex - built in just three months and capable of treating more than 1,000 patients during a health emergency. It cost nearly 100 million euros ($120 million).

- Queen Elizabeth II's Christmas off -
Queen Elizabeth II, 94, who has spent much of the coronavirus outbreak in self-isolation because of her age, will forego her traditional family Christmas, the royal household says.

With inputs from AFP.