2,000 die in US, highest so far

More than 2,000 people who tested positive for coronavirus died across the US on Friday - the highest number of fatalities seen so far.

According to Johns Hopkins University, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US has now exceeded 500,000, Sky News reports.

However, there are signs that Americans are increasingly staying at home to help reduce the number of new infections.

Top economic officials in the Trump administration have expressed hope that businesses could start to reopen in May, but America's top infectious diseases expert has warned against relaxing restrictions prematurely.

"Now is no time to back off," Dr Anthony Fauci said.

In total, more than 18,600 people in the US have died after testing positive for the coronavirus - narrowly behind Italy, which currently has the highest number of fatalities worldwide.

Officials have warned that fatalities will likely peak this week and then start to decline.-AP