(Yicai Global) March 24 -- Chinese health authority said tosday it received reports of 78 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the Chinese mainland yesterday, of which 74 were imported from abroad.

Of the 74 imported cases, 31 were reported in Beijing, 14 in Guangdong, nine in Shanghai, five in Fujian, four in Tianjin, three in Jiangsu, two in Zhejiang, two in Sichuan, and one in Shanxi, Liaoning, Shandong and Chongqing respectively. By the end of yesterday, 427 imported cases had been reported, according to the National Health Commission.

Also yesterday, seven deaths and 35 new suspected cases were reported on the mainland, with all the deaths in Hubei province, according to the National Health Commission.

The commission said 456 people were discharged from hospital after recovery yesterday, while the number of severe cases decreased by 176 to 1,573.

The overall confirmed cases on the mainland had reached 81,171 by the end of yesterday, including 4,735 patients who were still being treated, 73,159 patients who had been discharged after recovery, and 3,277 people who died of the disease.

The commission said that 132 people were still suspected of being infected with the virus.

The commission added that 12,077 close contacts were still under medical observation and 769 people were discharged from medical observation yesterday.

By the end of yesterday, 356 confirmed cases had been reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (including four deaths), 25 in the Macau Special Administrative Region and 195 in Taiwan (including two deaths).

Some 101 patients in Hong Kong, 10 in Macau and 29 in Taiwan have been discharged from hospital after recovery.

Editor: Xia Ruirui