(Reuters) – China reported 12 new mainland COVID-19 cases on Feb. 11, official data showed on Friday, up from two cases a day earlier but there were no new locally transmitted infections as the Lunar New Year holiday began.
All of the new cases were imported infections, the National Health Commission said in a statement. New asymptomatic infections, which China does not classify as confirmed COVID-19 cases, fell to eight from 16 a day earlier.
China saw a major resurgence of the disease in January, when a cluster emerged in Hebei province, which surrounds Beijing. The disease spread to northeastern Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces in the country’s worst outbreak since March 2020, prompting an aggressive package of measures including lockdowns in the worst-hit areas to curb the spread of the virus.
Friday’s data adds to evidence that China was able to effectively stamp out the latest wave of infections and avoid another full-blown COVID-19 crisis.
The total number of confirmed mainland China COVID-19 cases stands at 89,748. The death toll is unchanged at 4,636.
(Reporting by Se Young Lee in Washington; Editing by Tom Hogue)
