The ministry also reported 653 COVID 19-related deaths, down from 753 on Wednesday.
There were 250,186 coronavirus swabs carried out in the past day, the ministry said, against a previous 234,834.
Italy was the first Western country to be hit by the virus and has seen 47,870 COVID-19 fatalities since its outbreak emerged in February, the second highest toll in Europe after Britain's. It has also registered 1.309 million cases.The northern region of Lombardy, centered on Italy's financial capital Milan, remained the hardest hit area on Thursday, reporting 7,453 new cases, down from 7,633 the day before.