国际英语新闻:Italy records 262 new COVID-19 infections

ROME, June 20 (Xinhua) -- The number of new infections from the novel coronavirus in Italy was 262, up from 251 reported on Friday but down from Thursday's 333, Italy's Civil Protection Department said on Saturday.

The total active infections decreased to 21,212 over the past 24 hours.

A total of 182,453 patients have recovered, up by 546 people compared to Friday. Forty-nine patients have lost their lives, bringing the overall death toll to 34,610.

Of those who tested positive for the novel coronavirus, 2,474 are hospitalized with symptoms.

The number of those in the intensive care units fell to 152, compared to 161 on Friday and 168 on Thursday.

The rest - 18,586 people, or 88 percent of those who tested positive for the coronavirus - are quarantined at home because they are asymptomatic or have very light symptoms.

The northern, densely populated and highly industrialized Lombardy region, whose capital is Milan, where the pandemic first broke out four months ago, still led in terms of active cases among Italy's 20 regions with 13,911 infections, down from 14,045 cases on Friday.

The region with the least cases was Valle d'Aosta which borders on France and Switzerland, with six cases, up from four on Friday.

The overall number of COVID-19 infections, fatalities and recoveries rose to 238,275 over the past 24 hours, against a total of 238,011 cases on Friday, the Civil Protection Department said.