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The drop in new COVID-19 cases should be viewed with caution says the Ministry of Health.

Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor James Fong says the daily case numbers have increased and decreased in the past and will continue to vary.

Doctor Fong highlights this is influenced by a number of factors including where samples that were tested on a particular day came from.

He adds for example the Western Division samples are currently being prioritised as they are still in the containment phase.

Doctor Fong  says quick turn around of results will help with identifying cases and contacts early to contain transmission.

The PS says it is more helpful to monitor our seven day average of cases over a period of time to assess our trend of cases.

The seven-day average of new cases per day is 863 cases or 975 cases per million population per day.

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