The variant first detected in India has now been officially recorded in 53 territories, a World Health Organization report showed.
Additionally, the WHO has received information from unofficial sources that the B.1.617 variant has been found in seven other territories, figures in the UN health agency’s weekly epidemiological update showed, taking the total to 60.
The report said B.1.617 had shown increased transmissibility, while disease severity and risk of infection were under investigation.
Globally over the past week, the number of new cases and deaths continued to decrease, with around 4.1 million new cases and 84,000 new deaths reported, a 14 percent and two percent decrease respectively compared to the previous week.
The WHO’s European region reported the largest decline in new cases and deaths in the past seven days, followed by the southeast Asia region.
