Why calculating the coronavirus death rate is not as easy it seems

Analysis: Health correspondent Shaun Lintern explains why the latest statistics about Covid-19 mortality rates need to be treated with caution

The virus is significantly more deadly than seasonal flu but likely to be less than estimates, according to experts. (AP)

The World Health Organisation sparked a flurry of speculation on Wednesday after its latest analysis of the global coronavirus outbreak suggested the death rate from the disease was much higher than previously thought.

In a potentially worrying escalation, WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that globally around 3.4 per cent of Covid-19 cases have died. It had previously been estimated at 2 per cent or below.

So what should we take from this new figure? Is it cause to panic and worry further? Well on one hand it is serious. If the 3.4 per cent figure is correct that is far more deadly than flu for example, which kills less than 1 per cent of those infected.