MOSCOW, July 18. /TASS/. The death toll due to the coronavirus infection in Russia is at the highest level since the beginning of the pandemic, however the growth in incidence in the country has almost stopped, according to TASS’ calculations based on the data from the anti-coronavirus crisis center.

The situation has noticeably improved in the regions considered to be the main hotspots of the infection - Moscow and the Moscow Region, but in some parts of the country, for example, in Crimea, the situation is still complicated.

TASS gathered key statistics of the pandemic for this week.

Spread

The growth of incidence in Russia has sharply slowed down: from July 12 to 18, the crisis center reported 174,800 new infections which surpasses the values of the previous seven days only by 1.4%. Last week, the increase amounted to 8%, while the week before it was 19%.

According to the crisis center, since the beginning of the pandemic 5,958,133 infections have been detected in the country which is slightly more than 4% of the population.

The incidence indicator which amounted to 16.8 daily cases per 100,000 people last Sunday has grown to 17.1.

According to TASS’ calculations, the coronavirus spread coefficient over seven days has decreased from 1.04 to 1.02. At the same time, for the most part of the week it has not surpassed one.

Recoveries

The number of recoveries in Russia is growing but hasn’t reached yet the number of detections. Over seven days, 141,012 people have recovered compared to 131,318 the week before.

In all, 5,341,231 individuals or 89.6% of the infected have recovered since the beginning of the pandemic. Last Sunday, the share of recoveries amounted to 89.9%.

The number of the so-called active cases, that is, the patients who are currently undergoing treatment, continues to increase but slower than earlier. Over a week it has increased by 28,371, reaching 468,483 - the highest since February 2.

Fatalities

Since July 12 through 18, the crisis center reported 5,417 deaths caused by the novel infection. This is the new record high since the beginning of the pandemic for the fourth consecutive time.

Despite the growth in fatalities, the lethality of the infection is almost not changing. Over seven days the indicator has increased from 2.47% to 2.49%.

It is necessary to keep in mind that the crisis center’s data is incomplete since it takes into account only those cases when the coronavirus was the primary cause of death and was swiftly confirmed.

The main hotspots

Moscow, the Moscow Region and St. Petersburg remain the main hotspots of the epidemic in the country but their share in the number of detected cases continues to decrease. This week it amounted to 37.7% compared to 42.2% the week before.

The main reason is the stabilization of the situation in these regions. Over the past seven days, Moscow has detected 33,897 infections (18.2% less than the week before), while the Moscow Region - 17,608 (1.3% less). The authorities of the capital and the region decided to lift some restrictions, for instance, the mandatory QR-code system for visiting cafes and restaurants.

St. Petersburg confirmed 13,707 infections which is only 1.7% more than during the previous week. The city has been detecting almost 2,000 daily infections but this parameter stopped growing and the coronavirus spread coefficient dropped below one.

The rest of Russia

In the majority of regions the incidence is still growing but at a noticeably slower rate. Thus, in the Northern Caucasus where at the end of June it reached almost 65%, this week the number of detected cases surpassed last week’s values only by 26.6%.

In the Urals, the increase amounted to 20.8% (compared to 31.2% a week ago), in Siberia - 16.1% (compared to 23.7%), in the Southern Federal District - 11.9% (compared to 21.2%), despite a serious outbreak in Crimea where over 400 infections are being detected for the second day in a row, and 11% (compared to 26%) in the Volga region.

The Northwestern Federal District confirmed only 2.8% more cases of the infection than last week, and the Far East - 0.2% less. In central Russia the decrease reached 8.4%.