Australia's New South Wales state has reported 356 new locally acquired cases of Covid-19 — its biggest daily rise in the pandemic — as officials scramble to contain the virus that has now spread to the northern parts of the state, reports Reuters.

Of the new cases, at least 57 have spent time in the community while infectious, the state's health department has said in a statement.

Authorities also said four more people had died from the virus, taking the total deaths in the state from the latest outbreak to 32.