国际英语资讯:Pandemic trend continues to improve in Italy,GDP forecast to drop 8.3 pct in 2020_时事

国际英语资讯:Pandemic trend continues to improve in Italy,GDP forecast to drop 8.3 pct in 2020

ROME, June 8 -- Italy's COVID-19 pandemic trend kept improving on Monday, with active infections dropping under 35,000, according to the latest data by the country's Civil Protection Department.

On the same day, an official forecast suggested the coronavirus crisis was having a strong impact on the euro-zone's third largest economy, as expected, and would require big efforts in the recovery phase.

Total active infections stood at 34,730, with a decrease of 532 cases compared to Sunday, the Civil Protection Department stated in its daily bulletin.

Among those infected, some 283 patients are currently in intensive care, down by 4 patients on a daily basis; another 4,729 are hospitalized with symptoms (down by 135), and the remaining 29,718 are isolated at home for being asymptomatic or with mild symptoms.

The country's coronavirus death toll grew to 33,964, after 65 fatalities were registered over the past 24 hours.

Some 747 new recoveries were also registered, bringing to 166,584 the total number of people cured since the pandemic officially broke out in the northern regions on Feb. 21.

The overall number of active COVID-19 infections, fatalities and recoveries rose by 280 to 235,278 cases over the past 24 hours.

As the pandemic slowed down visibly in recent weeks, Italy has lifted the lockdown imposed on March 10 but the government has been asking the public to respect rules for social distancing and other precautionary measures.