The coronavirus pandemic has killed at least 20,599 people worldwide since it first appeared in China in December, according to an AFP tally at 1900 GMT Wednesday using official figures.

More than 447,030 cases of infection have been officially diagnosed in 182 countries and territories since the start of the pandemic.

The tallies, using data collected by AFP offices from national authorities and information from the World Health Organization (WHO), are likely to reflect only a fraction of the actual number of infections.

Many countries are now only testing cases that require hospitalisation.

Since the tally carried out Tuesday at 1900 GMT, 2,341 new deaths and 43,010 new cases have been recorded worldwide.

The countries that recorded the most new deaths in 24 hours were Spain with 738, Italy with 683 and France with 231.

Italy, which recorded its first death linked to the coronavirus at the end of February, now has 7,503 deaths with 74,386 cases.

After Italy, the most affected countries are Spain with 3,434 deaths for 47,610 cases, mainland China with 3,281 deaths (81,218 cases), Iran with 2,077 deaths (27,017 cases), and France with 1,331 deaths (25,233 cases).

Since Tuesday at 1900 GMT, Jamaica, Cameroon, Estonia and Niger have announced their first deaths linked to the virus. Guinea-Bissau, Laos, Mali, Libya, Belize, Grenada and Dominica, have announced their first cases.

At 1900 GMT Wednesday, Europe had 239,912 cases and 13,824 deaths, Asia 99,927 cases with 3,596 deaths, the United States and Canada 62,194 cases with 854 deaths, the Middle East 32,182 cases and 2,123 deaths, Latin America and the Caribbean 7,529 cases with 124 deaths, Oceania 2,656 cases and nine deaths and Africa 2,631 cases and 69 deaths.