BREAKING: U.S. now overtakes China for most confirmed coronavirus cases

The U.S. has just overtaken China in having the biggest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the world, with 81,943 Americans being test positive for the virus, according to state-by-state figures published late on Thursday.
The figures showed confirmed cases of coronavirus in the U.S. had overtaken the 81,285 cases reported by China. The biggest outbreaks were in New York, New Jersey, and California. A total of 1,177 Americans have died from the flu-like virus.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) warned earlier on Wednesday that the U.S. could become the new centre of the coronavirus pandemic.
The latest U.S. figures indicate how the centre of gravity for the coronavirus pandemic has moved from Asia to the West, said the Financial Times.

The U.S.  overtook China on the same day Beijing announced it was temporarily suspending visits from almost all foreign nationals — a marked reversal to policies carried out in the U.S.  and Europe in January to limit travellers from China.

Only 27 states in addition to Washington, DC, have imposed lockdown rules for their citizens.

There are now 523,163 confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.