Mainland China has confirmed 31 new coronavirus deaths after about 125 new cases of the disease was reported on Monday March 2.
The numbers are lowest of new coronavirus cases in more than a month, but the epidemic showed little signs of waning elsewhere. Three countries — South Korea, Italy and Iran — each had at least 1,000 total cases and the number of infections in the United States topped 100.
The sharp drop in new infections from a day earlier was driven by a further decline in new confirmed cases in Wuhan, the city hit hardest by the pathogen in China.
The country’s efforts to control the spread, included limiting the movements of 700 million people. In Hubei Province, where the epidemic erupted and where the overwhelming majority of cases have been identified, 2,410 patients were released from hospitals and emergency clinics.
The worldwide death toll topped 3,000, and the number of cases passed 90,000 in about 70 countries.
