Germany's coronavirus cases are rising exponentially, and the country could see up to 20,000 new daily infections at the end of this week, Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said Tuesday.
Altmaier said that the pandemic poses a great challenge to the resilience of Germany's economy and that rising infections and restrictions on daily life would make it harder for growth in Europe to rebound as quickly as previously hoped.
Germany recorded 11,409 new daily infections and 42 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the latest data from the country's infections disease agency, the Robert Koch Institute.
More than 280 regions across the nation are now considered coronavirus hotspots, having exceeded the government threshold of 50 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within the past seven days.
German officials recently introduced new measures to prevent the spread of the virus, including limiting private and public gatherings as well as mandating the use of face masks on busy streets.