In China, authorities have reported a sharp drop in new coronavirus infections.

There were 394 new confirmed cases and 114 deaths reported on Wednesday, down from 1,749 new cases on Tuesday, the National Health Commission said.

Overall, there have now been 2,118 deaths and more than 75,000 confirmed infections recorded in mainland China. About 16,000 patients have recovered.

There are more than 1,000 cases outside of China with the biggest cluster on the Diamond Princess in Japan, followed by Singapore, South Korea and Hong Kong.

Iran says two people infected with the virus have died in the city of Qom - the first reported deaths in the Middle East.

On Wednesday, Hong Kong said a 70-year-old man with underlying illnesses became the territory's second fatality.

France, Japan, the Philippines and Taiwan have each had one death attributed to the virus.

Source: BBC

BDST: 1225 HRS, FEB 20, 2020
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