The record-breaking figure of 1,973 deaths (slightly higher than the previous day’s toll of 1,939) brings the total number of US fatalities to 14,695.

The US death toll now exceeds that of Spain, which has suffered 14,555 deaths, but has not surpassed Italy, whose toll stands at 17,669.

In New York, the epicentre of the US outbreak, the state’s governor noted the new single-day high for virus deaths at 779, but offered an optimistic view for the weeks to come.

"We are flattening the curve," Andrew Cuomo told reporters, as he cited a decreasing hospitalization rate due to stay-at-home orders.

That optimism was shared by US President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who both said the data seemed to indicate a turn for the better.
"We are hopefully heading towards a final stretch, the light at the end of the tunnel," Trump told reporters.

Pence chimed in: "We’re beginning to see glimmers of hope."

DELICATE BALANCE

Governments are grappling with how to balance public safety against the devastating economic impact of stay-at-home orders that have erased millions of jobs in a matter of weeks.

More than 86,000 people worldwide have died in the virus crisis, which has sent the global economy spiralling and forced billions of people to remain at home as much as possible.

As the economic downturn starts to bite, health experts stressed that any premature loosening of restrictions could accelerate the spread of a contagion that has already infiltrated nearly every country.