The fresh figure reached 303,816 cases with 12,950 deaths, the CSSE said.

NEW YORK, March 21  -- The number of COVID-19 cases worldwide topped 300,000 as of 6 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on Saturday (2200 GMT), according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

The fresh figure reached 303,816 cases with 12,950 deaths, the CSSE said.

A man waits to enter a supermarket in Bologna, Italy, March 20, 2020.(Photo by Gianni Schicchi/Xinhua)

Outside China, the countries that reported over 10,000 cases include Italy, Spain, the United States, Germany, Iran and France. Italy suffered the most deaths from the disease, which stood at 4,825 as of Saturday afternoon, according to the CSSE.