(Yicai Global) Dec. 31 -- Less than 0.1 percent of those vaccinated against Covid-19 have experienced mild fever, and cases with more serious adverse side effects, such as allergic reactions, made up about two per million, Zeng Yixin, deputy director of the National Health Commission, said today.

The incidence of adverse reactions to Sinopharm's shot is very close to that of other types of inactivated vaccines. Most adverse reactions take the form of localized pain and lumps, Zeng said.

The jab developed by the firm’s Beijing Biological Products Institute affiliate under China National Pharmaceutical Group has been approved for marketing by China's National Medical Products Administration, the agency announced at a press conference today.

The results of phase I and II clinical trials show antibodies still remain at a high level for more than six months, said Wu Yonglin, president of China National Biotec Group.

By the end of last month, the cumulative number of Covid-19 inoculations injected had exceeded 1.5 million doses and 60,000 people getting a shot have gone to work in high-risk areas abroad. No reports of serious infections have emerged to date and thus the safety of the vaccines has been amply demonstrated.

China has started inoculating key and vulnerable populations since Dec. 15. The total number of administrations to them nationwide in the past two weeks has now surpassed 3 million doses.

Editor: Ben Armour, Xiao Yi