Germany's coronavirus spread appears to be picking up speed again, official data showed today, just days after Chancellor Angela Merkel said the country could gradually return to normal.
The Robert Koch Institute for public health said Germany's closely watched reproduction rate (the R number) had climbed to 1.1, meaning 10 people with Covid-19 infect on average 11 others.
The RKI has warned that for the infection rate to be deemed under control and slowing down, the R number has to stay below one.
As recently as Wednesday, Germany's number stood at 0.65. But since then, the country has reported clusters of new cases at slaughterhouses and at care homes for the elderly.