Despite a few rich countries doing well, global COVID-19 cases are the highest they've ever been

A Covid-19 patient gets admitted to a government hospital in Kolkata, India, 22 April, 2021. India reported 314,835 fresh coronavirus infections on Thursday according to an Indian media report.

A COVID-19 patient admitted to the hospital in Kolkata, India. Indranil Aditya/NurPhoto via Getty Images

  • Daily new COVID-19 cases remain at an all-time high, a WHO chart shows.

  • The number of daily new cases recorded in South-East Asia is rising especially fast.

  • India is battling a devastating surge while vaccinations are underway in the US and Europe.

  • See more stories on Insider’s business page.

Global COVID-19 cases remain at an all-time high even as some rich countries report fewer and fewer.

The graph below, from the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Dashboard, shows the number of daily new coronavirus cases recorded globally as of Sunday:

coronavirus daily cases who

It shows the number of daily new cases recorded in South-East Asia, where India is located, rising dramatically while the number of new cases in Europe get smaller.

India is currently battling a devastating surge of the virus and has recorded more than 300,000 daily new cases for the past five days in a row.

Hospitals have reported dire oxygen shortages and are turning patients away, leaving many people to die while waiting for help.

Meanwhile, Europe and the US have recorded fewer daily new cases as their vaccination rollouts continue.

As of Sunday, nearly 140 million people in the US – more than 40% of the population – have received at least one shot of the vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the UK, the proportion of people given a single shot passed 50%, with small nations like Israel, Bahrain and Bhutan also having strong vaccine drives. But the vast majority of countries are nowhere close to that.

The US has pledged to supply India with raw materials for vaccine production as well as personal protective equipment, testing kits, and ventilators. The UK is also sending ventilators and oxygen devices.

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source: yahoo.com