Brasilia, Mar 18 (IANS): Brazil registered a record 90,303 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, pushing the nationwide tally to 11,693,838, the Ministry of Health said.
In the same period, 2,648 more people died from the disease, increasing the national death toll to 284,775, Xinhua news agency reported.
The South American country currently accounts for the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll and caseload, only next to the US.
Brazil is one of the hardest hit countries by the pandemic, experiencing another wave of infections which has overwhelmed the health system in most regional capitals.
Currently, the country has an average of 136 deaths and 5,565 cases of infection per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the Ministry.
Brazil has so far vaccinated more than 14.18 million people.