evidence: A highly mutated Omicron variant has been responsible for more than nine in 10 New Zealand coronavirus infections - making it easily the most dominant strain in more than a year. [...] While surveillance showed Covid-19 infection rates remained elevated across New Zealand, there were indications the country was past the peak of the wave, with hospitalisations and wastewater detections trending downward nationally. Te Whatu Ora's latest update showed 245 Covid-19 cases in hospital at midnight Sunday - around half the number reported in mid-January.