Saudi Arabia records 355 new virus cases World faces worst time since Great Depression JEDDAH: More than 1.50 million people have been reported infected by the novel coronavirus across the world and 91,783 have died. Infections have been reported in 212 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019. The global pandemic is causing an economic crisis unlike any in the past century and will require a massive response to ensure recovery, IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said. Georgieva warned that the world should brace for “the worst economic fallout since the Great Depression.” The US Federal Reserve threw out just such a lifeline to Americans, with chairman Jerome Powell announcing financing facilities of $2.3 trillion “to provide as much relief and stability as we can during this period of constrained economic activity.” New York State recorded its single-day record for COVID-19 deaths, with 799, although the rate of new hospitalizations fell, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. A staggering 16.8 million Americans have been thrown onto the unemployment rolls in just three weeks, underscoring the terrifying speed with which the coronavirus outbreak has brought world economies to their knees. In neighboring Canada, the government forecast that between 11,000 and 22,000 could die. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson left intensive care on Thursday as he continues to recover from COVID-19, but he remains under close observation in hospital. “The prime minister has been moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery,” a spokesman from his office said. Saudi Arabia recorded 355 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, taking the total number of active cases to 2,577 with a total of 3,287 reported cases since the beginning of the outbreak. Of the new cases, 89 were recorded in Madinah, 83 in Riyadh, 78 in Makkah and 45 in Jeddah. There are currently 41 cases in intensive care units. Thirty-five recoveries were announced, bringing the total number to 666 recoveries so far with three new fatalities, bringing the total death toll to 44.