Coronavirus: latest updates as reports suggest sharp spike in deaths and cases

Nearly 60,000 people have now been diagnosed with the virus in China, with Wednesday being the deadliest day of the outbreak so far

Medical workers in protective suits move a patient at an isolated ward of a hospital in Caidian district following an outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan, Hubei province, China. REUTERS

A staff member sprays disinfectant in a subway train compartment in Beijing. AFP

Workers operate a vehicle to carry out disinfection in Jianghan district, following an outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan, Hubei province, China. REUTERS

A worker wearing a protective mask sprays disinfectant at a market in Beijing, China. EPA

A man and his child wear protective masks at a market in Beijing, China. EPA

People wearing protective suits walk from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, with around 3,600 people quarantined onboard due to fears of the new coronavirus, at the Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama port. AFP

A Chinese employee works at a factory in Nantong in China's eastern Jiangsu province . AFP

epa08208368 A Chinese vendor sorts vegetables at a market in Beijing, China. EPA

Workers have lunch at a dining hall using boards to separate people to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus in Yantai in China's eastern Shandong province. AFP

A picture released by Xinhua News Agency shows Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (C), also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the leading group of the CPC Central Committee on the prevention and control of the epidemic, inspecting the Institute of Pathogen Biology at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences in Beijing, China. EPA

Workers of the ecology and environment bureau collect samples from the sewage system of a hospital following an outbreak of the novel coronavirus in the country, in Xinle, Hebei province, China. REUTERS

A Malaysian Royal Guard wears a protective mask while he stands guard outside National Palace, following the outbreak of a new coronavirus in China, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. REUTERS

A Malaysian Royal Guard wears a protective mask while he stands guard outside National Palace, following the outbreak of a new coronavirus in China, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. REUTERS

China reshuffled its top officials in Hubei, as the number of new cases and deaths surged after the province at the centre of the coronavirus epidemic revised its method for counting infections.

Fatalities in the area climbed by 242, bringing China’s death toll to at least 1,355. The number of infections jumped by 14,840, sending the total number of cases in China toward 60,000.

Japan confirmed 44 more cases on a quarantined cruise ship, bringing the total of infections from the vessel to 218. Hong Kong extended the closure of schools until March 16.

In the UAE, an eighth case was confirmed a day after a female patient was discharged. Six others remain in a stable condition.

Here are the main developments:

• Coronavirus: disease officially named Covid-19
• Hundreds tested as a precaution against eight confirmed cases, says Emirati health minister
• Chinese residents returning to UAE should 'remain in home quarantine'
• UAE coronavirus victim makes 'full recovery'
• British scientists begin animal testing phase for new vaccine