BEIJING 1 Mar (ANA) - China reported a fresh spike in coronavirus infections on Sunday, as US President Donald Trump urged calm after the first death on American soil and Australia registered its first fatality.

The virus has spread to more than 60 countries around the globe, prompting the World Health Organization to raise its risk assessment to its highest level.

Worldwide, nearly 3,000 people have been killed and more than 87,000 infected since the virus was first detected late last year in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.

China on Sunday reported 573 new infections, the highest figure in a week after a dip. All but three of them were in Hubei province, of which Wuhan is the capital.

Despite the increase, China said its response to the epidemic -- which include temporarily closing factories and quarantining Hubei -- "continues to be good" though risks still remained. 

"The next step is to focus on the risks brought by the resumption of work and the increasing number of foreign cases," said Mi Feng, spokesman at the National Health Commission. 

While the numbers in China are still far lower than the huge daily increases reported during the first two weeks of February, COVID-19 has spread rapidly across borders, with South Korea, Italy and Iran emerging as hotspots.

South Korea, which has the most infected people outside China, reported 586 new cases on Sunday, bringing its total to 3,736.

Australia reported the first death on its soil -- a 78-year-old man who had been evacuated from the coronavirus-stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan.

There are fears the disease could hammer the global economy, and stock markets last week plunged to their lowest levels since the 2008 financial crisis.(ANA)

FA/ANA/1 March 2020--------