There have been six new deaths of people with Covid-19 recorded in the Highlands in the past 24 hours, according to the latest statistics from the Scottish Government.
The increase, shown in Public Health Scotland data, means the council area has reported 43 coronavirus deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.
In the north-east, eight people were reported to have lost their lives with the virus in the past day – four in Aberdeenshire, two in Aberdeen City and one in Moray.
Across Scotland, however, there were signs that the grip of the coronavirus was loosening, as the test positivity rate dropped to 6.9%.
That is its lowest value since Christmas, and approaching the 5% threshold used to determine whether the spread is under control.
In the NHS Grampian health board area, 128 new cases have been reported in the past 24 hours, meaning it has identified 11,724 cases since the pandemic began.
Coronavirus in Scotland – track the spread in these charts and maps
There are 115 people in NHS Grampian hospitals with Covid-19, an increase of two from yesterday, with nine of them in intensive care, which is an increase of one.
NHS Highland, meanwhile, has reported 46 new cases in the past day, to bring its total to 3,631.
There have been three new cases reported on Orkney and one on Shetland.
Only one new case has been reported on the Western Isles, in a promising sign that the recent outbreak there could be coming to an end.
There were 1,480 new cases of Covid-19 recorded across Scotland in the last 24 hours, continuing the gradual downward trend since the first week of the new year.
There are 2,053 people in Scottish hospitals who have recently tested positive for the virus, and 161 patients being treated in intensive care.
Over the past day, 71 people have died in Scotland after testing positive.
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