Nine new COVID-19 cases were detected overnight, health authorities announced on Saturday.

The nine new cases were coupled with seven patient recoveries registered overnight, as the number of active virus cases fell slightly to 76. Active virus cases have remained below 100 for 16 consecutive days.

Healthcare workers administered a relatively high 2,764 swab tests on Friday.

A total of 419 people have died while infected with COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic in Malta, with the last deaths dating back to 11 days ago.

Malta’s vaccination drive continued at a steady pace on Friday with 5,459 doses administered in one day. So far, 230,594 people – more than half of all adults - have been fully vaccinated while 325,511 have received one dose. As of Friday, there were no virus patients in intensive care and just a handful in hospital.

The Alpha virus variant, first detected in the UK, continues to account for almost half of all active cases, with variants first detected in Brazil and South Africa also among those found.

The COVID-19 Delta variant, previously referred to as the Indian variant, was detected in Malta for the first time this week, public health chief Charmaine Gauci said on Friday. The variant is highly contagious and has spread widely across the UK.

Malta officially reopened to tourism this week, when a raft of public health restrictions were lifted. More measures are expected to be eased next month, and Gauci said on Friday that authorities would soon announce what types of activities would be permited in July.