COVID-19 fatalities in Italy rose by 525 over the past day to 15,887, with the death rate dropping below 600 for the first time in two weeks, Angelo Borrelli, the head of the National Civil Protection Department, said on Sunday.
Borrelli also stated that the number of people in intensive care and the daily increase in cases are both trending downwards.
"Today there are two positive indicators. Those hospitalised in both general and intensive care are declining. As of today, 91,246 people are still showing symptoms of the disease, an increase of 2,972 compared to yesterday", he said.
A total of 2,886 new cases of COVID-19 were reported on 4 April; a significant decline compared to the daily rises of more than 5,000 cases registered in late March.
"The number of people who have recovered is now 21,815. During the day this number increased by 819", Borrelli added.
The latest figures demonstrate a recent decline in the number of daily deaths in Italy. On 4 April, 681 new deaths were reported in the country. The corresponding rise on 3 April was 766.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic on 11 March. To date, more than 1,133,758 people have been infected with the coronavirus worldwide, with over 62,784 fatalities, according to a WHO report.
