Paris, May 26 (IANS) As it entered its third week of de-confinement, France on Monday recorded fewer hospitalized COVID-19 patients, a further sign that a gradual and slow exit from the lockdown is bearing fruit.

In a statement, the country's Health Ministry said 16,798 people infected with the novel coronavirus were receiving treatment in hospital, down from 17,185 on Sunday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The number of patients in intensive care units dropped by 46 to 1,609, it added. The update of the epidemic's death tally would be unveiled on Tuesday.

Since the start of the epidemic, 145,279 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been recorded in France, 65,199 people have recovered from the disease among hospitalized patients.

--IANS pgh/