New COVID-19 subvariants account for over half new cases in U.S.

Pedestrians walk past a COVID-19 testing site near the World Trade Center in New York, the United States, March 29, 2022. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

The two variants, BQ.1 and BQ.1.1, are descendants of Omicron's BA.5 subvariant. They have replaced BA. 5 to be the dominant strains in the United States.

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- New Omicron subvariants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 accounted for over half of new COVID-19 cases in the United States in the latest week, according to the latest estimates of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

BQ.1.1 made up about 29.4 percent of circulating variants in the week ending Nov. 26, and BQ.1 was estimated to make up 27.9 percent, according to CDC data.

The two variants are descendants of Omicron's BA.5 subvariant. They have replaced BA. 5 to be the dominant strains in the United States.

The BA.5 accounted for 19.4 percent of new infections in the latest week, CDC data showed.

The CDC is also tracking another new COVID-19 variant of concern known as XBB, which has grown to make up an estimated 3.1 percent of new infections nationwide.

XBB is behind a vast swath of infections across some South Asian countries and has made up an increasing share of reported virus sequences from around the world and in arriving international travelers.