ROME, July 19 (Xinhua) -- The blue-chip index on the Italian Stock Exchange closed 3.3 percent lower on Monday, pushed lower by worries that the fast-spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus may start to impact the country's economy.

The Milan-based bourse called the losses during the first session of the week "dramatic," also noting that the Delta variant worries pushed interest rates on government debt higher.

Monday saw the largest drop during a three-session losing streak for the exchange. While other major European exchanges also fell on Monday -- Frankfurt was down 2.6 percent, London 2.3 percent, and Paris 2.5 percent -- none saw losses as large as those in Milan.

The worries about the variant came despite the continuation of positive trends for the broad coronavirus pandemic indicators in Italy.

There were just over 2,000 new infections recorded over the 24-hour period ending Monday. The rate hasn't topped 3,000 since late May, far lower than peaks of more than 25,000 last seen in March. The one-day death toll was seven, matching the lowest total since September 2020.

The country's vaccine rollout also hit an important milestone Monday, when 50 percent of the country's population over the age of 12 was vaccinated.

Italy has so far managed to avoid a spike in the national coronavirus infection rate that has struck other European countries including Britain, France, the Netherlands and Spain.

But the Delta variant is accounting for an ever-larger percentage of those infected, which is worrying health officials and investors alike. According to news reports, at least three Italian regions -- Lazio, the region that includes the capital of Rome, plus the northern region of Veneto and the southern island region of Sicily -- are all in danger of being reclassified as "yellow" zones, the second least restrictive category in Italy's four-color system of coronavirus restrictions. The entire country had been classified as "white" zones -- the least restrictive category -- since late June.

News reports on Monday said the Delta variant is now the dominant variant in every Italian region.

Monday's losses represent a change in fortune for the Italian Stock Exchange, which before last Thursday had seen gains in six of eight sessions, with investor sentiment buoyed in part by the gradual recovery of tourism and industrial production sectors and even the country's dramatic European Championship football victory over England on July 10. But that momentum now appears to be fading.

The stock exchange reported that volume on Monday was unusually high, with 2.24 billion euros (2.64 billion U.S. dollars) changing hands, up from 1.81 billion euros (2.13 billion U.S. dollars) on Friday. Of the 451 equities that traded on Monday, 409 lost ground, with 22 gaining and the remaining 20 holdings unchanged. Futures were also trading lower, meaning the bourse is likely to open lower on Tuesday. Enditem

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