China yesterday reported a drop in new COVID-19 cases after closing its borders to virtually all foreigners to curb imported infections, while the city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, saw no new deaths for the first time.
China had 32 new confirmed cases on Monday, down from 39 a day earlier, the Chinese National Health Commission said.
All of the 32 cases involved travelers arriving from overseas, compared with 38 imported cases a day earlier.
The overall number of imported infections so far stands at 983, the commission said.
Wuhan, capital of Hubei Province, reported only two new confirmed cases in the past 14 days.
It is due to allow people to leave the city today for the first time since it was locked down on Jan. 23 to curb the spread of the virus.
With China well past the peak of infections in February, authorities have turned their attention to imported cases and asymptomatic patients, who show no symptoms, but can still pass on the virus.
China has shut its borders to foreigners as the virus spread globally, although most imported cases have involved Chinese nationals returning from overseas.
The number of inbound travelers to China through airports has fallen to under 3,000 per day from about 25,000 late last month, before China reduced the number of international flights.
It also started testing all international arrivals for the virus this month.
The total number of confirmed cases in China stood at 81,740 as of Monday, while 3,331 people have died, the commission said.
Wuhan, where daily fatalities had fallen to fewer than 10 since late last month, had no new deaths on Monday.
China reported 30 new asymptomatic cases on Monday, nine of which involved incoming travelers.
Of the new asymptomatic cases, 18 were in Hubei.
About one-quarter of the asymptomatic cases were also imported, the commission said.
Last week, China began disclosing the number of asymptomatic cases for the first time, after growing public concerns over the potential of “silent” carriers to spread the disease.
Fears have also been growing over a potential resurgence in Wuhan, where the virus was first detected in December last year.
After a number of asymptomatic cases were confirmed in the city, local authorities revoked the “epidemic-free” status of 45 residential compounds on Monday.
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