There were no signs of weakening as the surge in coronavirus cases roared back after a slight drop in infections for a day with the positivity ratio soared to over alarming nine percent, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Pakistan has recorded 60 more deaths and 5,661 infections by the coronavirus during the last 24 hours (Wednesday), showed the figures released by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Thursday morning.

As per the latest NCOC figures, with the addition of 6o new deaths the toll has now surged to 23,635 whereas the total number of cases has now reached 1,053,660 after adding 5,661 new ones.

https://twitter.com/OfficialNcoc/status/1423088322889588739

During the past 24 hours (Wednesday), as many as 6,787 patients have recovered from the virus whereas the total recoveries stood at 952,616. As of Thursday, the total count of active cases was recorded at 77,409 whereas the positivity ratio was recorded at 9.06 percent after 62,462 tests were carried out during the last 24 hours (Wednesday).

As many as 392,433 coronavirus cases have so far been confirmed in Sindh, 360,494 in Punjab, 146,485 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 89,117 in Islamabad, 30,880 in Balochistan, 25,778 in Azad Kashmir and 8,473 in Gilgit Baltistan.

Moreover, 11,122 individuals have so far lost their lives to the pandemic in Punjab, 6,098 in Sindh, 4,495 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 807 in Islamabad, 636 in Azad Kashmir, 329 in Balochistan and 148 in Gilgit Baltistan.

GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS

Here are the global developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- WHO's booster plea -
The World Health Organization calls for the rollout of vaccine booster shots to be delayed so that poor countries have a better chance of getting their hands on doses for first and second jabs.

- Beijing travel curbs -
The Chinese capital tightens restrictions on overseas travel for its citizens as the country reports its highest daily number of local cases in six months.

- First Olympic cluster -
All 12 members of the Greek artistic swimming team are in isolation after five test positive in the first cluster detected at the Games.

- Masks return in France -
Less than two months after France ended compulsory mask wearing outdoors, several coastal areas have made it mandatory again, with Brittany's Finistere area becoming the latest to issue the order.

- EU Novavax deal -
The European Union signs a preliminary deal to buy up to 200 million doses of the promising traditional two-shot Novavax vaccine.

The US pharma firm says its jab shows 90 percent efficacy against the virus.

- Obama scales back party -
Former US president Barack Obama scales back his 60th birthday bash at his luxury Martha's Vineyard residence to family and close friends because of the fast spread of the Delta variant.

Republicans had criticised the party with guests reportedly including George Clooney, Steven Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey.

- Israel restrictions -
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett says more vaccinations and a raft of renewed restrictions could spare Israel another lockdown as virus cases soar to an average of 2,000 per day.

- Vaccinologist Barbie -
Toy giant Mattel says it hopes its Barbie doll modelled on the co-creator of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine Sarah Gilbert will "inspire the next generation".

- Macau record tumbles -
Macau orders compulsory testing for all residents after a family of four catch the Delta variant, breaking the city's 16-month virus-free record.

- Corsica emergency -
Health officials in France activate an emergency plan on the Mediterranean island of Corsica as infections surge.

- Jabs get study boost -
According to an ongoing study in England, fully vaccinated people are three times less likely to test positive for Covid-19 and less likely to pass it on.

- Full Pfizer approval soon -
The US drug regulator is set to fully approve the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine by early next month, The New York Times reports.

- Eviction moratorium -
Under pressure from progressive Democrats, US health authorities declare a new moratorium on evictions until October in much of the country, citing public health risks posed by the pandemic.

- Over 4.2 million dead -
The coronavirus pandemic has killed at least 4,247,231 people worldwide since the virus first emerged in late 2019, according to an AFP compilation of official data. 

The US is the worst-affected country with 614,295 deaths, followed by Brazil with 558,432, India 425,757, Mexico 241,936 and Peru with 196,598. 

With inputs from AFP.