COVID-19: France reports 36 deaths, infections minimal

PARIS

Sunday marked yet another day of progress in the battle against coronavirus as the number of fatalities in France continues to drop, according to new statistics from France's Health Ministry.

A total of 36 fatalities were registered on Sunday, a drop of 11 cases from Saturday. Deaths in hospital stand at 36. There were no recorded fatalities for nursing homes on Sunday, with the data set for release on Monday, said the ministry.

Since the start of the outbreak, the death toll in France stands at 28,367 with cases of infection rising to 144,921, a rise of 115 cases over the previous day.

The number of hospitalizations rose slightly on Sunday with cases standing now at 17,185, up by seven patients from the day before. Those in intensive care fell to 1,655, down 10 patients from Saturday.

Despite the severity of the virus, most people experience mild symptoms before recovering. Since the beginning of record-keeping for the disease, 64,617 people have recovered in France from the epidemic and have returned home.

After originating in China last December, COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, has spread to 188 countries and regions across the world. Europe and the US are currently the worst-hit regions.

The pandemic has killed just over 343,000 people, with total infections reaching almost 5.4 million, while over 2.14 million people have recovered from the disease, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.