Scientists in Vietnam have found a new variant of the coronavirus which is said to be a hybrid of the Indian version of the virus and the UK version of the virus.

The lab test results show that the virus spreads more easily than other variations of the virus, said the nation's Health Nguyen Thanh Long on Saturday.

He added that the virus could be behind the recent surge of cases in Vietnam. 

The Southeast Asian nation had done so far good to contain the virus. It had recorded just 3,100 cases and 35 deaths since the start of the Pandemic, till early May.

However, the country has confirmed more than 3,500 new cases and 12 deaths in the last few weeks, increasing the country’s total death toll to 47.

Most of the new transmissions were found in Bac Ninh and Bac Giang, two provinces dense with industrial zones where hundreds of thousands of people work for major companies including Samsung, Canon, and Luxshare, a partner in assembling Apple products. Despite strict health regulations, a company in Bac Giang discovered that one-fifth of its 4,800 workers had tested positive for the virus.

The World Health Organization has recognized four variations of coronavirus as the variant of concern until now. The strains of the virus first found in the UK, Brazil, South Africa, and India have been said alarming.