COVID-19 update: WHO says the pandemic 'end is in sight'

This is your update on COVID-19 in Australia for 15 September.

Participants parade through the streets of Brisbane's West End during the Kurilpa Derby on 4 September 2022. The Kurilpa Derby is organised as a community celebration of vibrant and multicultural West End. The event was returned to its original format after having been cancelled in 2020 and radically restructured in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Credit: Joshua Prieto/Sipa USA

Key Points

New COVID-19 cases declined by 28 per cent and deaths by 22 per cent: WHO
Health authorities track new subvariant BA.4.6 gaining traction in the US and UK
Research shows mental health of young Australians has dramatically improved

The World Health Organization (WHO) said new cases declined by 28 per cent deaths by 22 per cent and deaths for the week ending 11 September.

Japan, Korea, the US, Russia and China reported the highest COVID-19 cases.

WHO's Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the number of weekly deaths reported from coronavirus was the lowest since March 2020.

"We have never been in a better position to end the pandemic. We are not there yet, but the end is in sight," Mr Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

He said the downward trend in the global monkeypox outbreak is continuing.

Health authorities are tracking Omicron's new subvariant BA.4.6, which is gaining traction in the US and the UK. The new subvariant accounts for nine per cent of cases in the US and 3.3 per cent in the UK.

The Victoria tourism industry is bouncing back from the impacts of COVID-19.

On Thursday, Victoria's Tourism Minister Steve Dimopoulos welcomed the first major cruise ship with 2,500 tourists in two years.

More cruise ships are expected to arrive from late October through April next year.

New analysis from the Australian National University shows the mental health and well-being of young Australians have dramatically improved despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Research showed Australians aged 18-24 feel more optimistic about their lives and future and are experiencing less psychological distress compared with Australians aged 45-64.

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