From Italy to India to the United States, governments rolled out tougher measures to halt the rapid spread of the coronavirus pandemic as global cases surged past 300,000 yesterday and Asia braced for a possible second wave of infections.

Italy's world-topping toll from the coronavirus pandemic approached 5,500 yeterday after the Mediterranean country reported another 651 deaths.

The latest daily toll was smaller than Saturday's record 793 fatalities but still the second-highest registered during Italy's month-long crisis.

 The number of new infections rose by 10.4 percent to 59,138.

 Italy's death toll now stands at 5,476.

The pandemic has sparked fears of a global recession, prompting governments to unleash gigantic emergency measures to avoid an economic meltdown.

More than 12,000 people have died from the virus worldwide, with the situation increasingly grim in Italy, the new epicentre of the disease which first emerged in central China late last year before marching across the globe.

Countries in Asia now worry infections could once again mount on their shores as travellers return from badly-hit parts of Europe, a continent under siege by the pandemic, with more than 150,000 declared cases.

Lockdown measures have done little to stem

new infections and deaths and the government announced the closure of all non-essential factories in a late-night TV address.

Police patrolled the deserted streets of Rome yesterday (Sunday), while checks were also carried out on beaches there  after local officials complained people were defying orders to catch some time in the sun. In his weekly prayer — now being streamed live to avoid crowds gathering — the Pope urged all Italians to follow isolation measures.

“Let us do the things that the government asks us to do for the good of us all,” Pope Francis said.

Similar shut-in measures have been rolled out in badly-hit Spain and France, where helicopters and drones were being deployed to ensure crowds do not gather in parks or along river banks. Spain saw a sharp spike in deaths again Sunday — a 30 percent rise bringing total fatalities to 1,720 — while France saw its death toll mount to 562 on Saturday. Britain is also ramping up its response in the wake of steadily rising cases and deaths.