Pakistan recorded more than 3,000 new coronavirus cases for the second consecutive day during the past 24 hours (Wednesday) as the country continues grappling with the second wave of the pandemic.

According to the data released by the National Command and Operation Centre on Thursday morning, the total number of cases reported in the country has reached 386,198 with the addition of 3,306 new infected people.

On the other hand, the death toll in Pakistan climbed to 7,843 after another 40 people died of Covid-19 during the past 24 hours.

Most of these latest deaths were again reported in Punjab as 19 coronavirus patients died in the provinces. It was followed by eight in Sindh, six in Islamabad, five in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one each in Azad Kashmir and Balochistan.

As a natural consequence of the increase in infection rate, the number of active coronavirus cases is also on the rise with the number currently standing at 43,963, which again represented an increase of over 1,800 over the previous day after as only 1,418 people recovered from the infection during the same period.

Out of those who are receiving treatment in hospitals, 1,968 are critically ill and admitted to intensive care units. It means their number increased by 101 during the past 24 hours.

Although Sindh is the most affected province of the country in terms of cases, most of the deaths have been reported in Punjab. The region-wise details are given as: 

Sindh 167,381 cases and 2,866 deaths, Punjab 116,506 cases and 2,923 deaths, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 45,828 cases and 1,344 deaths, Islamabad 28,555 cases and 298 deaths, Balochistan 16,942 cases and 165 deaths, Azad Kashmir 6,403 cases and 152 deaths, Gilgit Baltistan 4,583 cases and 96 deaths.

Meanwhile, the total number of people fully recovering from the infection on Wednesday reached 334,392.

During the past 24 hours, the authorities have increased testing in the country and administered 45,999 more tests in their efforts to identify, isolate and trace new cases to control the infection rate, increasing the overall number to 5,343,702.

Over 2,400 US deaths in 24 hours
The United States on Wednesday registered more than 2,400 deaths from Covid-19 in 24 hours, according to the Johns Hopkins University tally -- the highest daily toll in six months as the Thanksgiving holiday began.

At 8:30pm (0030 GMT Thursday), the country had recorded a total of 262,080 Covid deaths, up by 2,439 in 24 hours. It also registered nearly 200,000 new cases.

Travel appeared to be down the night before Thanksgiving, when Americans usually criss-cross the country to be with family and friends for a feast on Thursday marking one of their most important national holidays.

In recent days, images on social media of crowded airports fueled concerns Americans were not taking the warnings seriously. 

But one day before Thursday's celebrations, officials and passengers in Los Angeles noted an eerie quiet compared to previous years.

US President-elect Joe Biden cited accelerating plans to deliver a vaccine as he appealed for his "weary" countrymen to dig deep.

"There is real hope, tangible hope. So hang on. Don't let yourself surrender to the fatigue," Biden said in a televised Thanksgiving address.

"You will get your lives back. Life is going to return to normal. That will happen. This will not last forever."

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

- More than 60 million cases -
More than 60 million people have been infected by Covid-19, according to an AFP tally from official sources compiled as of 1830 GMT on Wednesday.

In total 60,014,291 infections, including 1,415,258 million deaths, have been recorded around the world since the pandemic emerged in China late last year.

The US is the worst-affected country with 260,000 deaths, followed by Brazil with 170,115 deaths; India with 134,699 deaths; Mexico with 102,739 deaths; and the United Kingdom with 55,838 deaths. 

- British economy slumps -
Britain's economy is expected to shrink 11.3 percent this year, its greatest annual slump in more than three centuries on coronavirus fallout, the government forecast, as it separately unveiled plans to slash the foreign aid budget.

- Pakistan crisis -
Pakistan doctors report intensive care units across the country are nearing capacity with a second, deadlier wave building momentum.

- US jobless claims -
New applications for jobless aid in the United States saw their second back-to-back weekly increase, raising concerns that a renewed economic downturn is beginning, as the US grapples with a surge in Covid-19 cases.

- Tokyo lockdown -
Tokyo's governor urges residents to avoid non-essential outings and asks businesses serving alcohol to shut early. After a comparatively small first outbreak the country it is now reporting record numbers of infections.

- Bulgaria gets tough -
Bulgaria's government announces a return to tougher restrictions, including the closure of restaurants and schools.

- LA too -
A restaurant dining ban in Los Angeles comes into force, on the eve of Thanksgiving. 

- Not so fast - 
England and France are among nations relaxing lockdowns ahead of end-of-year holidays, but EU chief Ursula von der Leyen warns countries should not ease restrictions too quickly, stressing the risk of a post-Christmas third wave.