Italy registers lowest total of daily new COVID-19 cases

Italy has registered its lowest total of daily new COVID-19 cases since the start of the nationwide lockdown in early March.

According to Health Ministry data, 802 coronavirus infections were confirmed in the 24-hour period ending Sunday evening.

That's also the first time daily new cases have dropped below the 1,000-mark since very early in the country's outbreak. Italy now totals 219,070 known cases.

There were 165 deaths because of the virus since Saturday evening, raising the number of known deaths of infected patients to 30,560.

Authorities say the real total is surely much higher, as deaths at home or nursing care facilities or personal residence aren't counted if COVID-19 testing isn't done, although many of those deceased may well have had the illness.

Helping to account for such a lower daily new case total was Lombardy, Italy's most stricken region. That northern region registered 282 infections in the 24-hour period. In recent days it had registered several hundred fresh cases daily.