Germany sees rise in Covid-19 cases, though numbers remain low

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Germany has been on the rise again for about a month, albeit at a relatively low level, according to Germany's Robert Koch Institute (RKI) disease control agency.

According to a report by the institute's Influenza Working Group, about 2,400 cases of Covid-19 were reported nationwide last week.

This is more than double the number reported in the week ending July 9, when there were about 1,000 cases recorded.

The RKI also sees further indications of an increase in Covid-19 activity in Germany. It said there was no indication of a change in disease severity, however.

"Overall, however, the number Covid-19 cases continue to be very low," the agency writes.

According to the report, the increase in case numbers goes hand in hand with the spread of the EG.5 variant, which was upgraded last week by the World Health Organization (WHO) to the category "virus variants of interest."

However, experts do not assume that the variant, sometimes also called Eris, is particularly dangerous.

According to the RKI report, the activity of acute respiratory diseases was generally "at a low summer level."

About a quarter of people suffering from Covid-19 were hospitalized in the past weeks, according to the data.

The reported cases represent only a small part of actual Covid infections as many mild cases go unrecorded.