NCR's weekly COVID growth rate drops to -20% but remains critical

Metro Manila's weekly COVID-19 growth rate decreased to -20% from -10%, but remains at critical risk, according to OCTA Research on Thursday.

OCTA fellow Dr. Guido David noted that while the reproduction number dropped to 1.58 and new cases were recorded at 9,455, Metro Manila still averages around 13,000 daily infections.

Manila specifically saw its seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases decrease by 7%, with only 1,210 new cases reported on January 17, the lowest since January 4.