A highly transmissible COVID-19 variant has arrived in Australia. What you need to know about XEC
www.abc.net.au
Australia has recorded its first cases of the XEC COVID-19 variant that has been spreading in Europe this year. Here's what you need to know about XEC — the highly transmissible strain that has been reported in 29 countries.

In short:

Australia has recorded its first cases of the XEC COVID-19 variant that has been spreading in Europe this year.

The mutation is a “recombinant” variant that is a mix of two previous Omicron subvariants called KS 1.1 and KP 3.3.

What’s next?

An infectious disease expert says the strain has the hallmarks of something that could lead to a “summer wave” of infections.