China reports 17 new COVID-19 cases vs 12 a day earlier

Mainland China recorded 17 new COVID-19 cases on Dec. 18, up from 12 a day earlier, the country's health authority said on Saturday. The National Health Commission said in its daily bulletin that 14 of the new cases were imported. Among the three local transmissions, two were in the capital Beijing and one was in the northeastern province of Liaoning.

Another 16 asymptomatic cases were also reported on Dec. 18, up from 11 on the previous day. China does not include asymptomatic patients in its total confirmed case list. Mainland China has now reported an accumulated total of 86,806 coronavirus cases, with 4,634 deaths.