Malaysia recorded its third Covid-19 death of the year during Epidemiological Week 35/2025 (EW35), Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad announced yesterday. The latest fatality involved a 91-year-old bedridden senior citizen.

“This brings the total number of Covid-19 deaths this year to three, as reported in EW24/2025, EW30/2025, and EW35/2025,” Dzulkefly said in a post on X.

The minister also revealed that a new Covid-19 variant, XFG, has been detected in Malaysia. The variant accounted for 8.2% of the total cases reported during EW35.

Overall, the number of new Covid-19 cases in EW35 dropped by 12.8%, with 594 cases recorded compared with 681 in the previous week (EW34).

Genomic surveillance indicates that the NB 1.8.1 variant remains the dominant strain, making up 39.4% of cases. This is followed by JN.1 (18.1%) and XEC (13.3%), while other variants collectively represent 21% of cases.

As of EW35, Malaysia has reported a total of 43,087 Covid-19 cases for 2025. This marks a significant decrease of 49.5% compared with the same period last year, which saw 85,297 cases.

Dzulkefly urged the public to remain vigilant by practising basic preventive measures such as frequent hand washing, wearing face masks when symptomatic or in crowded areas, and getting vaccinated if they are in high-risk groups.

Global Covid-19 Latest Update

Globally, SARS-CoV-2 activity remained stable in the week of 25 to 31 August 2025. According to the latest updates from World Health Organization (WHO), 44,580 samples were tested across 70 countries, with 2,375 (5.3%) testing positive for the virus.

Elevated or increased activity was reported in parts of Central America and Caribbean, Tropical South America, South West, Northern, and Eastern Europe, Western and Northern Africa, and Western, Eastern, and South-East Asia.

In the last 28 days (4 to 31 August), 76 countries across five WHO regions reported a total of 93,061 new cases—a rise compared to the previous period’s 58,515 new cases from 93 countries. Over 10% increases in new cases were seen in 36 countries from the Americas and Europe.

What are the Circulating Variants?

WHO is currently tracking several SARS-CoV-2 variants:

• Variant of Interest: JN.1
• Variants Under Monitoring: XFG, NB.1.8.1, LP.8.1, KP.3.1.1, XEC

The XFG variant is now the most prevalent globally, accounting for 65% of all submitted sequences in late August—up from 54% in late July. NB.1.8.1 accounted for 22%, down from 28% over the same period. Other variants showed stable or decreasing trends. Available evidence suggests XFG and NB.1.8.1 do not pose additional public health risks compared to other circulating variants.

Regionally, XFG increased in Europe and remained stable in the Americas and Western Pacific; NB.1.8.1 decreased or remained stable.

Global Hospitalisations & Deaths

A total of 9,429 new hospitalisations and 355 new ICU admissions were reported globally in the past 28 days. Thirteen countries from the Americas and Europe showed increasing trends in hospitalisations; eight showed rising ICU admissions.

In the same period, there were 1,249 new deaths globally—an increase from the previous period’s 1,038 deaths. Ten countries from the Americas and Europe reported over a 10% increase in deaths. In July 2025, most deaths (87%) occurred among those aged 65 and older.

Malaysia’s situation remains stable locally but cautious as global case numbers and deaths have shown a recent increase in several regions.

Health authorities urge continued vigilance and preventive measures as variant circulation evolves worldwide.