There are 125 new Covid-19 cases in the community on Friday, made up of 118 in Auckland, four in Waikato, one in Northland and two in Christchurch, the Ministry of Health has confirmed.
"A further case in Auckland who is an MIQ worker, first announced yesterday, remains under investigation to determine whether they are a community or border-related case," the ministry added.
"The rise in case numbers is a reminder of the infectiousness of Covid-19, and particularly the Delta variant, and the importance of vaccination as the best protection.
"With over 30,000 tests processed nationwide yesterday, these results aren’t unexpected."
The two new Christchurch cases , from the same household, were expected and linked to the two cases in Christchurch reported on Thursday.
The new Northland case was also not unexpected, as they are a household contact of a previously reported case. They were already isolating.
Another of Friday's cases is a resident at Edmonton Meadows retirement village in Auckland's Henderson.
"Public health staff are confident the risk of infection is low but, as a precaution, testing is being arranged for all staff and residents," the ministry said.
"Both staff and residents at the village have very high vaccination rates."
For the Waikato cases, one has been linked to existing cases and interviews with the remaining three are underway.
As at 10am on Friday, 74 of the new cases are linked to the current Delta outbreak, including 29 household contacts.
The remaining 51 are under investigation to find a link.
The total number of cases in this Delta outbreak is now 3046, of which 1560 have recovered.
There are now 39 people with Covid-19 in hospital, including four in intensive care or a high dependency unit.
There are 18 at Auckland City Hospital, 12 at Middlemore Hospital and nine at Waitemata Hospital.
Two Cantabrians tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday night. (Source: Other)
The average age of people with Covid-19 in hospital is 49.
There are 3066 contacts linked to this outbreak, of which 77 per cent have been contacted and received at least one test.
As of 1pm on Friday, there were 391 locations of interest on the Ministry of Health's website, including three new exposure sites.
On Thursday, 31,093 Covid-19 tests were processed, including 11,942 in Auckland.
In total, more than 4.03 million tests for Covid-19 have been processed since the pandemic began.
"We are continuing to concentrate on testing in areas with higher positivity rates and where the risk of unidentified cases is higher," the ministry said.
"We are asking people in the (Auckland) suburbs of Redvale, Rosedale, New Lynn, Wiri, Drury, Henderson and Manurewa to get a test as soon as possible if they have symptoms – no matter how mild and even if they are fully vaccinated."
On vaccines, 44,779 jabs were administered across the country on Thursday, made up of 12,780 first doses and 31,999 second doses.
In total, more than 6.76 million Covid-19 vaccinations have been administered in New Zealand to date.
There were also four new border cases to report on Friday, one of which is a historical case.
The total number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 in New Zealand is now 5764 since the pandemic began.
Meanwhile, Covid-19 was detected in a Christchurch wastewater sample taken on Wednesday, from a catchment which covers a population of more than 300,000.
"Further samples are being collected today from a range of sites across Canterbury, in addition to testing in Christchurch, with laboratory results expected early next week," the ministry said.
In Auckland, public health officials are now supporting 478 Covid-19 cases in the community to isolate at home.
Auckland and parts of Waikato are at Alert Level 3, with the rest of the country at Level 2.
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