The death toll from China's coronavirus outbreak surged again on Thursday, rising by 73 to a total of 563 people, Reuters reports. It was the third straight record one-day increase. There have been two deaths outside mainland China, one in the Philippines and the other in Hong Kong. Another 10 cases were confirmed on a quarantined cruise ship in the Japanese port of Yokohama, bringing the total cases on board to 20.
Experts are intensifying a push to develop a vaccine for the flu-like virus. Drugmakers warned they still had a long way to go before finding an effective treatment, although a report of a possible "breakthrough" lifted financial markets that have been struggling against fears of an economic backlash from the outbreak.
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