MOSCOW, April 17. /TASS/. About 40-45% of people infected with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Russia are asymptomatic, head of the Russian Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare Anna Popova said during a briefing on Friday.

"Two weeks ago, the share of people diagnosed with the virus but exhibiting no symptoms reached 10-12%, with the maximum of 20%. In recent days, the share of such people has risen to 45-50%," Popova said.

In late December 2019, Chinese officials notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, in central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus — named COVID-19 by the WHO — have been reported in every corner of the globe, including Russia.

On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. According to the latest statistics, over 2,190,000 people have been infected worldwide and more than 147,000 deaths have been reported. In addition, so far, over 553,000 individuals have recovered from the illness across the globe.

To date, a total of 32,008 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 2,590 patients having recovered from the virus. Russia’s latest data indicates 273 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.