Since 17 February, when 2,324 infections were recorded, the number of new daily cases had not exceeded 2,000.

In the epidemiological bulletin of the Directorate General of Health (DGS) it is noted that 504 people with Covid-19 are hospitalised today, 12 more than on Tuesday, 120 of which in intensive care units, one more.

The Lisbon and Tagus Valley area has 56.5 percent of the total of new infections, concentrating 1,336 new cases.

The data also shows a substantial increase in the number of cases in the North region, which now has 435 new infections, in the Algarve region, with 254 cases and in the Centre region, with 224.

The four deaths in the last 24 hours occurred in the Lisbon and Tagus Valley region (3) and in the Autonomous region of Madeira.

The data released by the DGS also show that there are 1,337 more active cases, totalling 33,471 and that 1,021 were given as recovered in the last 24 hours, which increases the national total to 828,990 recovered.

Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, 17,096 people have died in Portugal and 879,557 cases of infection have been recorded.

The number of contacts under surveillance by health authorities has risen by 2,166 to a total of 53,275.

The incidence of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in mainland Portugal continues to rise, and now stands at 176.9 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, as well as 172.8 for the whole territory, official data shows.

On Monday, the incidence of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in mainland Portugal was 161.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, while the figure for the whole country was 158.5.

According to the joint epidemiological bulletin of the General Directorate of Health (DGS) and the National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge (INSA), the transmissibility index (Rt) remains at 1.14 throughout the country and rises from 1.14 to 1.15 in mainland Portugal.

The transmissibility index and 14-day incidence data are updated on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

The region of Lisbon and Tagus Valley with the notification of 1,336 new infections, accounts so far 340,038 cases and 7,263 deaths.

In the North region, there are now 435 new infections by SARS-CoV-2, totalling 345,825 cases of infection and 5,365 deaths since the pandemic began.

In the Centre region, 224 more cases have been registered, accumulating 122,107 infections and 3,027 deaths.

In the Alentejo, 64 more cases were reported, totalling 30,997 infections and 972 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

In the Algarve region, today's bulletin reveals that 254 cases have been recorded, accumulating 24,489 infections and 365 deaths.

The Autonomous Region of Madeira has recorded 14 cases, adding 9,922 infections and 70 deaths due to Covid-19 since March 2020.

The Azores now has 35 new cases accounting for 6,179 cases and 34 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

The regional authorities of the Azores and Madeira release their data daily, which may not coincide with the information released in the DGS bulletin.

The new coronavirus has already infected at least 400,849 men and 478,245 women in Portugal, DGS data show, according to which there are 463 cases of unknown gender, which are under investigation as this information is not provided automatically.

Of the total number of fatalities, 8,972 were men and 8,124 women.

The highest number of deaths continues to be concentrated in the elderly over 80 years old, followed by the age group between 70 and 79 years old.

Of the total deaths, 11,221 were people aged over 80, 3,649 were aged between 70 and 79, and 1,540 were aged between 60 and 69.

The pandemic caused at least 3,940,888 deaths worldwide, resulting from more than 181.7 million cases of infection, according to a report by the French agency AFP.