German Covid-19 cases 'may be 10 times higher than official figures'

Researchers highlight risk of asymptomatic infection, as Europe begins easing lockdown

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More than 10 times as many people in Germany may have been infected with coronavirus than thought, researchers have said, as Italy led swathes of Europe out of lockdown and officials said the continent's outbreak was mostly past its peak.

Researchers from Bonn University said on Monday their preliminary study, based on field work in the town of Gangelt in Heinsberg municipality, which had one of the country's highest death tolls, showed the risk of infection by asymptomatic carriers.