STOCKHOLM: Sweden, which has shunned lockdowns throughout the pandemic, registered 4,838 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, health agency statistics showed.

The country of 10 million inhabitants registered 13 new deaths, taking the total to 12,977. The deaths registered have occurred over several days and sometimes weeks.

Sweden's death rate per capita is many times higher than that of its Nordic neighbours' but lower than in several European countries that opted for lockdowns.