China

BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese health authority said Sunday that it received report of 14 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the Chinese mainland Saturday, of which two were imported cases reported in Shanghai.

Twelve cases were domestically transmitted, with 11 reported in Jilin Province and the other one in Hubei Province, the National Health Commission said in a daily report.

One new suspected case imported from abroad was reported in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

No deaths were reported Saturday on the mainland, according to the commission.

Beijing, May 9 (PTI) China has reported 15 new asymptomatic coronavirus cases, taking their total to 836 while one new imported COVID-19 infection was confirmed, health officials said on Saturday.

According to China's National Health Commission (NHC), as for Friday 836 asymptomatic cases, including 63 from overseas, were still under medical observation.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will reform its disease prevention and control system to address weaknesses exposed by the coronavirus outbreak, a senior health official said on Saturday.

China has been criticised domestically and abroad as being initially slow to react to the epidemic, which first broke out on a large scale in Wuhan. The virus has since spread across the world, infecting almost 4 million people and killing almost a quarter-million from the COVID-19 disease it causes.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Saturday it would extend anti-dumping duties on certain alloy steel seamless tubes and pipes from the United States and European Union for five years starting May 10.

The decision is part of a final review of anti-dumping duties for the products that had been in place from 2014 to May 2019. Last June, it hiked the tariffs by as much as ten times while the review was underway and those levels of duties now remain in place.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China is willing to offer support to North Korea within its ability against the coronavirus epidemic, state television said on Saturday, quoting President Xi Jinping as saying in a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Xi said he was very concerned about the situation in North Korea and the health of its people, and said he was pleased that its efforts to control the respiratory illness had achieved positive results, state television said.

BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- China's support for the United Nations (UN) is concrete as it has fully paid its membership and peacekeeping assessments this year, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said Friday.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Top U.S. and Chinese trade representatives discussed their Phase 1 trade deal on Friday with China saying they agreed to improve the atmosphere for its implementation and the United States saying both sides expected obligations to be met.

The discussion in a telephone call comes amid escalating tension between the countries, exacerbated by a war of words over U.S. criticism of China’s handling of the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Beijing, May 7 (PTI) President Xi Jinping has cautioned people against complacency over the declining trend of coronavirus cases in the country as China on Thursday downgraded COVID-19 risk levels in all regions, signalling its successful containment.

All regions in China have seen their risk level downgraded to the lowest level starting Thursday, state-run China Daily reported.

BEIJING, May 6 (APP): China firmly supports the international cooperation initiative launched by Director-General of World Health Organization (WHO) on accelerating the development, production and equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and drugs, and decided to participate in this initiative, Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Wednesday.

“The virus knows no borders, and people of all countries have the right to equal access to vaccines and medicines,” she said during her regular briefing resumed here after May Day holidays.

HONG KONG, May 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Hong Kong announced plans to ease major social distancing measures, including reopening schools, cinemas, bars and beauty parlours after the Chinese territory largely halted local transmission of the deadly Coronavirus.

The relaxation, which comes into effect Friday, will be a boost for a city mired in a deep recession following months of virus restrictions as well as anti-government protests that have battered the economy.