LAHORE : A total of 1,708 new cases of the coronavirus were confirmed during the last 24 hours, bringing the national tally to 348,184.

With 21 more deaths reported overnight, the country’s death toll from the disease has surged to 7,021, according to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).

Earlier, the NCOC said the Covid positivity rate has exceeded five per cent after a gap of over three months.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Imran Khan, calling for collective efforts to curb the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, said that Pakistan and China were jointly working to produce a coronavirus vaccine.

Addressing the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Council of Heads of State (SCO-CHS) meeting via video link, the PM maintained that nearly 50 million people have lost their lives after the breakout of the deadly virus across the world.