Mainland reports 12 new COVID-19 cases; 6 imported, 6 local

The Chinese mainland reported 12 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Thursday, of which six were imported, the National Health Commission said on Friday.

Of the six newly reported confirmed cases imported from abroad, five were in Shanghai and one in Fujian province, it said in a daily report.

The other six new cases were domestically transmitted, with five being detected in Heilongjiang province and one in Inner Mongolia autonomous region, the commission added.

No deaths were reported Thursday on the mainland. Three new suspected cases, all imported from abroad and all in Shanghai, were reported.

So far, the mainland has reported a cumulative number of 1,670 confirmed COVID-19 cases imported from abroad, with 1,165 discharged from hospitals.

The current number of confirmed cases imported from abroad is 505, including seven in severe condition. The number of imported suspicious cases is seven. No deaths have been reported so far among those who arrived from abroad, according to the commission.

On Thursday, 32 people were discharged from hospitals after recovery, 882 people traced as close contacts were released from medical observation, and the number of critical cases decreased by three, the commission said.

To date, there are 599 confirmed cases remaining, including 38 in severe condition on the Chinese mainland. The number of suspected cases is nine, while that of those cured and discharged from hospitals has reached 77,642. A total of 4,633 people have died of the novel coronavirus pneumonia.

The commission also said that of the 732,966 people that have been traced as close contacts with the infected, 7,761 are still under medical observation.

In Hubei, the hardest-hit province of China, no deaths or confirmed cases were reported on Thursday. The province now has no patients with novel coronavirus pneumonia or suspected cases.

The province has reported 68,128 confirmed cases, with 50,333 in its capital Wuhan city. Over the past months, the province has seen 63,616 people recovered and discharged from hospitals, with 46,464 in Wuhan. A total of 4,512 people died in the province, of whom 3,869 in the capital city.

The commission said 25 asymptomatic cases were reported on Thursday, none of which were imported from abroad. Six asymptomatic cases, including one imported from abroad, turned into confirmed cases on the day.

On Thursday, a total of 36 asymptomatic people, including 11 imported from abroad, were released from medical observation, while 981 people with the virus but showing no symptoms were still under observation.

By the end of Thursday, 1,037 confirmed cases including four deaths had been reported in Hong Kong, 45 confirmed cases in Macao and 429 in Taiwan including six deaths. Meanwhile, 846 patients in Hong Kong, 35 in Macao and 322 in Taiwan had been cured and discharged from hospitals.