Covid, WHO: 6.7 million new cases and 64,000 deaths worldwide
The pandemic continues to slow: According to the latest update from the World Health Organization, from January 16 to February 12 there were 6.7 million new cases and 64,000 deaths worldwide, down 92% and 47% respectively. Although the trend is now consolidating, WHO warns data on infections is underestimated due to a drop in testing activity. However, the slowdown is also confirmed by the data on ward and intensive care unit hospitalizations, which fell by 53% and 24% respectively compared to the previous month. At the regional level, the most significant decrease (-96%) over the last month was observed in the Western Pacific region of the WHO, which still represents the area of the world with the highest number of infections: Japan and China alone account for more than 40% of the world’s cases (nearly 3 million). From January 16 to February 12, an estimated 1.2 million new cases emerged in the European Region. The highest number was reported from Germany (296,686 new cases), followed by Russia (216,104) and Italy (138,179). The number of deaths is also falling: 11,173, down 52% from the previous month. The highest number was recorded in the United Kingdom (2,269), followed by Italy (1,393) and Russia (1,153).