Brazil’s total number of confirmed deaths from coronavirus has now overtaken the WHO’s figure for Germany, where 7,549 people have so far died.

The country has reported 156,061 confirmed cases, an increase of 10,611 new cases in the last 24 hours.

While 8,318 are being treated in intensive care units, 61,685 patients suffering from coronavirus have been discharged from hospital after being cured.

Sao Paulo, the country’s most-populated state, continues to be the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in Brazil. The state has recorded at least 200 new deaths from coronavirus in 24 hours and the total rose to 3,608. There are already 44,411confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state.

Coronavirus pandemic was confirmed to have spread to Brazil on 25 February 2020, after a 61-year-old man from São Paulo who had returned from Lombardy, Italy tested positive for the virus.

The pandemic has triggered a variety of responses from federal, state and local governments, with an impact on politics, education and the economy. On 27 March Brazil announced a temporary ban on foreign air travelers, and most state governors have imposed quarantines to prevent the spread of the virus. (ILKHA)