Sunday saw a record number of SMS sent for permission to move around, figures published by the deputy ministry of research, innovation and digital policy on Monday showed.

A total of 619,247 messages were sent during the day, of which 591,002 were approved.

Most people, 179,263, asked for permission to buy essential goods or services, roughly 35,000 more than the same day the week before.

Even more, 223,500, went shopping on Saturday.

There was, however, a decrease in the amount of people opting for physical exercise, with numbers going down from nearly 172,000 on February 7 compared to roughly 142,000 on February 14.

While on all weekdays from February 1 until February 5 more than 22,000 requests for visits to hairdressers and beauticians were made, the numbers were significantly lower a week later, with 11,190 recorded on Thursday February 11 and 17,544 a day later.