(Bloomberg) --
Germany's confirmed coronavirus cases increased at a faster rate for the second day in a row and the number of fatalities climbed above 4,000 as the nation readies for some restrictions on public life to be lifted from next week.
There were 2,945 new infections in the 24 hours through Friday, taking the total to 137,698, according to data From Johns Hopkins University. The pace of increase in new cases had declined steadily for six days until Thursday.
The number of German fatalities rose by 248, the smallest gain in three days, to 4,052, while 77,000 people have recovered from the disease.
Read more: Merkel Moves Ahead With Gradual Return to Normality in Germany
Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday announced tentative steps to begin returning the country to normal. Some smaller shops will be allowed to start serving customers again next week, and schools will gradually reopen in early May. However, most of the restrictive measures brought in last month will remain in place for the time being.
Germany has the fourth-highest number of cases in Europe behind Spain, Italy and France. Almost 60,000 people have died from the virus in those three nations combined.
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