Iran Press/ America: The United States on Thursday surpassed 1,600 confirmed or presumptive cases of the coronavirus, and the death toll climbed to 41. Kansas reported its first death Thursday.
Wall Street recorded historic losses as fears intensified over the economic fallout from the pandemic, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling by 10 percent, and the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 both down by 9 percent.
It was the worst point drop ever for the Dow and its worst performance since the market crash in 1987.
Disruptions in the sports world continued, with March Madness canceled, the suspension of MLB's spring training and a pause on the National Hockey League season.
Health and government officials continue to call for the end of large gatherings, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints suspended public gatherings worldwide, the Smithsonian announced it will close indefinitely all museums in Washington, D.C. and New York City and Broadway theaters canceled performances through April 12.
Meanwhile, death toll in China from the novel coronavirus outbreak has risen to 3,179, the country's National Health Commission said Friday.
The agency said seven more people died in the last 24 hours while eight new cases were detected by authorities, bringing the total number of confirmed cases close to 80,813.
Six of the deaths occurred at the epicenter of the outbreak, Hubei province, and one in Shandong province.
The global death toll is now over 4,900, with more than 134,000 confirmed cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), which has declared the outbreak "a pandemic."
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