The deadly pandemic has already killed more than 120,000 people and infected close to two million worldwide since it first emerged in China late last year.

It has upended lives from New York to New Delhi as nations imposed extreme measures to contain the virus's devastating march, leaving billions largely confined to their homes -- but millions jobless and the global economy in a tailspin.

As the tally of deaths and new infections appears to begin to level off, world leaders and citizens are fiercely debating when to pull the plug on stay-at-home orders.

US President Donald Trump sparked controversy by implying he could force state governors and city mayors to send people back to work at his command.

The White House was expected to unveil a team Tuesday tasked with reopening the economy, as local leaders on both coasts banded together to say they would make their own decisions.