New South Wales state Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the ramp-up in inoculations in Australia's biggest city was providing some hope as the city battles its worst outbreak since the coronavirus pandemic began.

"The next few weeks will be hard, but no doubt that once we get those high vaccination rates life will feel much better, it will look much rosier," Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney, the capital of New South Wales.

"I know these are challenging times, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel."

Officials across the country reported a daily combined total of 754 cases on Thursday, surpassing the previous single-day high of 738 cases recorded on Aug. 5, 2020.

New South Wales accounted for the bulk of the cases, with 681 infections, and most of those were found in Sydney's western suburbs. The state recorded one new death.

Officials are racing to increase vaccination rates across New South Wales as a prerequisite for lifting lockdown measures in the state.

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