Washington: The coronavirus pandemic has claimed over 16,000 lives and infected over 460,000 people in the US, devastating the country's economy and rendering a record 16 million workers jobless in just three weeks.

Of this, the New York metropolitan area, comprising the adjoining New Jersey and Connecticut, alone account for more than 9,000 and 220,000 cases respectively.

Globally, over 1.5 million people have been infected so far by the coronavirus and the fatalities stands at nearly 95,000. The United States accounts for nearly 30 per cent of the all the COVID-19 positive cases and over 17 per cent of all fatalities.

By Thursday, nearly all of America -- 97 per cent of the 220 million population -- are under stay-at-home order. President Donald Trump has notified major disaster declaration for almost all the 50 States.

In New York City, which is considered the financial capital of the world and has one of the best health facilities, more than 800 deaths were reported in one day alone, taking the fatalities to a record 7,067.

New York Governor Andrew Cumo, however, asserted that COVID-19 now appears to have reached its peak in the city, where the number of new patients to hospitals have started coming down.

Strict enforcement of mitigation measures including maintaining social distancing, he said, is having an impact nationwide.

"As such they now are projecting far less death -- around 60,000 -- due to coronavirus than earlier projections of between one and two lakhs," he said.

It looks like we're at the lower end of the curb in terms of death, which is a terrible word... a terrible, dark word that we've experienced like nobody's ever seen before in this country. We have numbers that are terrible, Trump told reporters during his daily White House press conference on coronavirus.

It is, in the sense of deaths, a bad week. In fact, every day there seems to be a record number of deaths compared to the day before. In fact, New York today had again another record of -- I think the city itself had about 820-plus deaths, said Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a lead member of the White House Task Force on Coronavirus.

At the same time as we are seeing the increase in deaths, we are seeing rather dramatic decrease in the need for hospitalizations like I think yesterday was something like 200 new hospitalizations and it's been as high as 1,400 at any given time. So that is going in the right direction, Fauci said.

The deadly disease, which has forced people to stay standstill, has brought the American economy to standstill.

The air flight traffic has dropped by 96 percent and in just three weeks alone 6.6 million Americans have applied for unemployment benefits, a figure which reflects on the dire straight of the US economy.

The latest unemployment figures reflect that the USD 2 trillion relief package has not worked so far. But Trump exuded confidence that the economy is going to bounce back in the coming months.

I think the economy is going to do very well... i think our country, from an economic standpoint, will end up being stronger than ever. We have tremendous stimulus. We have tremendous stimulus plans. We have things in the works that are going to really, I think, fire the country, he asserted.

What's going to happen is we're going to have a big bounce rather than a small balance. But we will be back and I think, honestly, I think our country is going to be back from an economic standpoint, he said in response to a question.

In an interview webcast by the Brookings Institute, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the country needs to have a plan nationally for reopening the economy.

We all want it to happen as quickly as possible, he said.

In an interview to CNBC, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the economy could be ready to reopen by the end of May as soon as the president feels comfortable with the medical issues.

We are going to be opening up weekend opening very, very, very, very soon I hope. Together our people are writing one of the most noble chapters in the proud history of our nation, Trump told reporters at the White House.

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New Delhi (PTI): India and Canada on Monday sealed key pacts on supplies of Uranium and critical minerals and vowed to soon conclude a comprehensive economic partnership agreement, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney finalising a new framework to shore up ties including taking bilateral annual trade to USD 50 billion by 2030.

In their wide-ranging talks, the two leaders also pledged to ramp up cooperation in defence, critical technologies, small and modular nuclear reactors, education and renewable energy as Modi said the relations between the two countries are now filled with new energy, mutual trust and positivity.

Canada is set to support India's civil nuclear energy sector under the USD 2.6 billion uranium supply agreement.

The prime minister said both sides agreed that terrorism, extremism, and radicalisation are common and serious challenges not only for India and Canada but for all humanity. "Our close cooperation against these is crucial for global peace and stability," he said.

Modi and Carney also deliberated on the precarious security situation in West Asia with PM Modi asserting that India supports the resolution of all conflicts through dialogue and diplomacy.

"The current situation in West Asia is a matter of deep concern for us. India supports the resolution of all disputes through dialogue and diplomacy. We will continue to work with all countries to ensure the safety of all Indian citizens in the region," the prime minister said in his media statement.

The major outcomes of the Modi-Carney talks were their decision to expand trade relations, a move that comes amid Canada's increasingly frosty economic ties with the Trump administration.

The fresh move to bolster ties came as part of ongoing efforts by the two sides to reset the relations that came under severe strain following a diplomatic row over the killing of a Khalistani separatist in 2023.

"Our goal is to reach USD 50 billion in trade by 2030. Unlocking the full potential of economic cooperation is our priority. Therefore, we have decided to finalise the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement soon.

"This will create new investment and employment opportunities in both countries," Modi said.

"Canada's pension funds have invested USD 100 billion in India. This symbolises their deep belief in India's growth story," he said.

The volume of two-way annual trade at present is around USD 13 billion.

The prime minister said the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on critical minerals will strengthen resilient supply chains. Canada is known for its significant reservoir of critical minerals and rare earth materials.

"In the energy sector, we are building a next-generation partnership, which will focus on hydrocarbons as well as renewable energy, green hydrogen and energy storage," Modi said.

"In civil nuclear energy, we have signed a landmark deal for long-term uranium supply. We will also work together on small modular reactors and advanced reactors," he said.

Modi said the growing cooperation between the two countries in the field of defence and security symbolises the deep mutual trust and the maturity of the relationship.

"We will work to enhance defence industries, maritime domain awareness and military exchanges. To this end, today we have decided to establish the India-Canada defence dialogue," he said.

The prime minister also highlighted the expansion of two-way ties in the education sector.

"New partnerships between several universities in AI, healthcare, agriculture and innovation are being announced. We also agreed on Canadian universities opening campuses in India," he said.

The prime minister also made a mention of how India and Canada share an "unwavering belief" in democratic values.

"We celebrate diversity. The well-being of humanity is our shared vision. This vision inspires us to move forward in every field. Today, we discussed transforming this vision into a next level partnership," he said.

In his remarks, Carney mentioned the future of India-Canada energy ties.

"Today, we are launching a strategic energy partnership with significant potential to expand bilateral energy trade. We've signed a new critical minerals partnership spanning development, processing and secure supply chains for clean energy, electric vehicles and advanced manufacturing," he said.

"We're deepening our cooperation in clean energy, expanding collaboration across wind, solar and hydrogen, because Canada has big plans as well," he said.

Carney described the uranium supply agreement as a reflection of shared commitment to clean, reliable energy.

"All of these agreements under one planet are the beginning of a new, prosperous relationship that will offer generational opportunities for workers and businesses in both their countries and which will protect the planet for future generations," he said.

Carney landed in New Delhi on Sunday after spending two days in Mumbai, where he met several industry leaders.

In the face of its tense trade ties with the Trump administration, Canada is looking at building a stronger, independent and more resilient economy.

In the last few months, India and Canada have taken several steps to normalise their relations.

India-Canada ties hit rock bottom following then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in 2023 of a potential Indian link to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India dismissed Trudeau's accusation as "absurd".

In October 2024, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats after Ottawa attempted to link them to the Nijjar case. India also expelled an equal number of Canadian diplomats.

However, Liberal Party leader Carney's victory in the parliamentary election in April last year helped in beginning the process to reset relations.

Subsequently, both sides have already posted their high commissioners in each other's capitals.

Last June, Modi travelled to Kananaskis, Canada, to attend the G7 summit. Modi and Carney held extensive talks on the margins of the summit with a focus on rebuilding the ties.