Australia based data integration specialist Mike Honey, however, reported that the new strain has been detected in 27 countries, citing strong growth in Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands.Start the day smarter.

While XEC is not dominant in the United States, it could take hold by the late fall and winter, one health expert said in a newspaper interview.

The variant, which first appeared in Berlin in late June, has increasingly seen hundreds of cases in Germany, France, Denmark and Netherlands, according to a report by Australia-based data integration specialist Mike Honey.