Deaths from the Covid-19 epidemic in Italy climbed by 174 — against 474 the day before — the Civil Protection Agency said, posting the smallest daily toll of fatalities since March 10, Reuters reported.

The daily number of new cases also declined sharply to 1,389 from 1,900 on Saturday.

In recent weeks of the epidemic that emerged in Italy on Feb 21, the daily death count has tended to fall on Sundays only to rise again the following day.

Nonetheless the latest data still offers encouragement to the country as it prepares to gradually ease its eight-week-old lockdown from tomorrow.