There were more signs of coronavirus pandemic subsiding as Pakistan during the last 24 hours (Thursday) has recorded the lowest Covid-19 positivity ratio in many months, which was under three percent.

According to the statistics released by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Friday morning, Pakistan has registered another 56 coronavirus deaths and 1,411 infections during the last 24 hours (Thursday). 

As per the NCOC figures, after the addition of 56 new deaths, the overall toll has now surged to 27,785 whereas the number of total infections now stood at 1,246,538 after adding the fresh 1,411 cases.

During the last 24 hours (Thursday), a total of 49,049 tests were conducted throughout Pakistan whereas the positivity ratio stood at 2.87 percent. The number of patients in critical care was 3,649.

https://twitter.com/OfficialNcoc/status/1443746453730496513

During the last 24 hours (Thursday), as many as 1,024 patients have recovered from the virus whereas the total recoveries stood at 1,170,590. As of Friday, the total count of active cases in the country was recorded at 48,163.

As many as 457,928 coronavirus cases have so far been confirmed in Sindh, 431,666 in Punjab, 174,017 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 105,516 in Islamabad, 32,926 in Balochistan, 34,157 in Azad Kashmir and 10,328 in Gilgit-Baltistan.

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Moreover, 12,637 individuals have lost their lives to the pandemic in Punjab so far, 7,407 in Sindh, 5,547 in KP, 924 in Islamabad, 738 in Azad Kashmir, 348 in Balochistan and 184 in Gilgit Baltistan.

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GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS

Here are the global developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- Expo 2020 opens -

The Covid-delayed Expo 2020 is opened in Dubai by Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum at an extravagant opening ceremony for what is expected to be the world's biggest event since the start of the pandemic.

- EU extends vaccine export controls -

The EU says it will extend until the end of the year its export control mechanism under which makers of Covid-19 vaccines produced in the bloc need to get approval before shipping the doses overseas.

- Russia deaths spiral -

Russia reports its highest death toll for a third day in a row -- 867 -- as the highly infectious Delta variant and slow vaccination rates take their toll.

- ...and cases in Ukraine -

Ukraine reports its highest number of daily coronavirus cases since April -- 11,757 -- as authorities prepare to introduce compulsory vaccinations for teachers and government officials.

- New York vaccine mandate working - 

The hard-hit city and state of New York have managed to boost vaccination rates through their first-in-the-nation policy of forcing teachers and health care workers to get a Covid-19 shot.

- ...but Slovenia's blocked -

Slovenia's Constitutional Court blocks a government plan to make coronavirus vaccines mandatory for public employees, hours before it was due to come into force. 

- Africa lags on vaccinations -

Only 15 of Africa's 54 nations have managed to fully vaccinate at least 10 percent of their people, while half have jabbed less than two percent, according to the World Health Organization's Africa bureau.

- Philippine economic woes - 

The Philippine economy will take more than a decade to return to pre-pandemic growth, Economic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua says, warning the next two generations of Filipinos will be paying for the cost of Covid-19.

- More than 4.7 million dead -

The coronavirus has killed at least 4,771,320 people since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to an AFP compilation of official data. 

The US is the worst-affected country with 695,116 deaths, followed by Brazil with 596,122, India with 448,062, Mexico 276,973 and Russia 207,225.

Based on the latest reports, the countries with the most new deaths were the US with 2,543 new deaths, followed by Russia with 867 and Brazil with 676.

With inputs from AFP.