Deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic in Italy climbed by 75 on Sunday, against 111 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the daily tally of new cases fell to 355 from 416 on Saturday.

The total death toll since the outbreak came to light on Feb. 21 now stands at 33,415 the agency said, the third highest in the world after those of the United States and Britain.

The number of confirmed cases amounts to 233,019, the sixth highest global tally behind those of the United States, Russia, Spain, Britain and Brazil.

People registered as currently carrying the illness fell to 42,075 from 43,691 the day before.

There were 435 people in intensive care on Sunday, down from 450 on Saturday, maintaining a long-running decline. Of those originally infected, 157,507 were declared recovered against 155,633 a day earlier.

The agency said 2.434 million people had been tested for the virus against 2.405 million on Friday, out of a population of around 60 million.

Reuters