MILAN: Italy reported 52 coronavirus-related deaths on Saturday against 69 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections fell to 1,723 from 1,901.

Italy has registered 126,976 deaths linked to COVID-19 since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the eighth-highest in the world. The country has reported 4.24 million cases to date.

Patients in hospital with COVID-19 - not including those in intensive care - stood at 3,655 on Saturday, down from 3,876 a day earlier.

There were 25 new admissions to intensive care units, up from 21 on Friday. The total number of intensive care patients fell to 574 from a previous 597.

Some 212,966 tests for COVID-19 were carried out in the past day, compared with a previous 217,610.