The health ministry announced that there had been no new deaths from Covid-19 on Friday, and that 882 people tested positive from 62,161 PCR and rapid tests, a positivity rate of 1.42 per cent.

There are 117 people in hospitals of whom 30 are in serious condition and 12 of these are intubated.

Of the 62,161 tests carried out there were 6,873 PCR tests with the rest comprising 55,288 rapid tests.

The bulk of the positive tests, 667, were uncovered by the government’s screening programme, with 54,246 such rapid tests carried out on Friday.

The ministry’s results came as the government’s coronavirus advisory team met late on Friday night. CNA quoted a source as saying that the number of positive cases has so far not spooked the advisors – noting that the current number of hospital admissions are manageable.

Of the PCR tests conducted on Friday: Five travellers tested positive from the 3,110 airport checks with a further 157 positives from 3,431 tests taken privately and 26 from the 332 tests at hospitals.

Of the 1,042 rapid tests taken privately there were 27 which yielded positive results.

Per district, Limassol had the highest rate with 1.73 per cent (238 positives from 13,745 tests).

Famagusta was second with 1.36 per cent (51 positives from 3,760 tests), followed by Paphos’ 1.28 per cent (76 positives from 5,918 tests), Larnaca’s 1.14 per cent (103 positives from 9,031 tests) and, finally, Nicosia’s 0.94 per cent from 187 positives from 19,944 tests).

Six positives were identified at care homes.

In the north meanwhile, there were 126 positive identifications from 16,202 tests carried out on Friday.

Their total identified infections are now at 8,860 along with 35 Covid-19 deaths.