MANILA, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) reported 22,415 new COVID-19 infections on Monday, the highest ever single-day spike, raising the number of confirmed cases in the country to 2,103,331.

The DOH also reported 103 coronavirus-related deaths, raising the country's death toll to 34,337. Eight laboratories failed to submit data, it said.

The Philippines has recorded more than 20,000 daily cases for the fourth straight day.

According to the DOH, Metro Manila and its adjacent areas are the top contributors to the exponential increase in cases driven by the highly infectious Delta variant.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said at an online briefing that the Philippines' COVID-19 situation and health system capacity "remain at high risk."

"Ninety-five percent of the provinces and cities remain under alert level 3 and 4 and more than half of the regions still with high-risk health systems capacity," she said. Sixteen out of the 17 cities in Metro Manila are under alert level 4 due to a steady rise in COVID-19 infections.

Vergeire warned that COVID-19 cases "may continue to increase in the next weeks due to the higher transmissibility of the Delta variant."

Despite a surge in infections, the government lowered the lockdown classification in Metro Manila to general community quarantine from Sept. 8 to 30.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that a "granular lockdown" would be implemented in the capital region with more than 13 million people. The guidelines for the granular or targeted lockdown are still being finalized, he added.

The new lockdown rules still restrict people's mobility and mandate people to wear masks, face shields and avoid crowded and enclosed places.

As the government moves towards safely opening up the economy, the DOH urged people to continue protecting themselves and their families. "Only go out whenever essential," the DOH said.

The Philippines, which has around 110 million population, has tested over 17.5 million people since the outbreak in January 2020. Enditem

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