China virus toll surges on switch to new methodology

China has reported 254 new daily deaths and a spike in new daily virus cases of 15,152, after new methodology was applied in the hardest-hit province of Hubei as to how cases are categorised.

The total deaths from the more than two-month-old outbreak as reported on Thursday stood at 1,367, with the total number of confirmed cases mounting to 59,804. The change in categorisation appeared to push forward the process to a doctors' on-the-spot diagnosis rather than waiting for the results of laboratory tests.

The new figures were released hours after President Xi Jinping touted "positive results" from the government's drastic measures to contain the virus and a top Chinese expert predicted the epidemic would peak this month.

Hubei's communist party chief removed

The head of the Communist Party in the Chinese province of Hubei, the epicentre of a coronavirus, has been relieved of duty, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Former Shanghai Mayor Ying Yong succeeds Jiang Chaoliang as the ruling Communist Party's chief in the beleaguered province, while Wang Zhonglin will take over from Ma Guoqiang as the party secretary in Wuhan.

Military medical personnel sent to Wuhan

China on Thursday sent 1,400 military medical personnel to Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, official media reported.

Chinese Central Television (CCTV) showed China's latest heavy military transport aircraft, Y-20, arriving at Wuhan's Tianhe airport with people in uniforms.

CCTV said 11 military aircraft including 6 Y-20 carried about the personnel and materials to Wuhan on Thursday.

China is sending 2,600 military medical personnel in total, with the others arriving soon.

There are already over 4,000 military medical personnel in Wuhan.

'Clinically diagnosed'

Officials in Hubei said they were broadening their definition for COVID-19 cases by including people "clinically diagnosed" with the virus in the daily tally.

This means officials can use lung imaging on suspected cases to diagnose the virus, rather than the standard nucleic acid tests.

China has placed some 56 million in virtual quarantine in Hubei and its capital, Wuhan, since late last month and restricted movements of millions more in cities far from the epicentre in an unprecedented effort to contain the virus.

Xi chaired a meeting of the ruling Politburo Standing Committee on Wednesday after figures showed that the number of new cases had dropped for a second straight day.

China has been praised by the World Health Organization (WHO) for its transparent handling of the outbreak, in contrast to the way it concealed the extent of the SARS virus.

But it has faced continued scepticism among the global public, with suggestions that there may be similarities with the way it dealt with the 2002-2003 outbreak.

Authorities in Hubei have been accused of concealing the gravity of the outbreak in early January because they were holding key political meetings at the time.

Cruise ship infections

Several countries have banned arrivals from China, while major airlines have halted flights to and from the country, as hundreds of people have now been infected in some two dozen countries.

The biggest cluster of cases outside China is on a cruise ship quarantined off Japan's coast.

An additional 44 people on board the Diamond Princess have tested positive, raising the total number of cases to 218, while thousands of passengers and crew face a second week in quarantine.

'Too early' to predict

Zhong Nanshan, a renowned scientist at China's National Health Commission, had said on Tuesday he thought the outbreak would peak in mid- to late-February.

But in Geneva, World Health Organization officials warned Wednesday against reaching premature conclusions on the Chinese data.

"I think it's way too early to try to predict the beginning, the middle or the end of this epidemic right now," said Michael Ryan, head of WHO's health emergencies programme.

In Spain, organisers of the world's top mobile telecommunications trade fair, the World Mobile Congress, said the event would be cancelled following an exodus of industry heavyweights over coronavirus fears.

The GSMA, which organises the annual show, set for Barcelona, said it was cancelled due to "the global concern regarding the coronavirus outbreak, travel concern and other circumstances."

The announcement was made just hours after Vodafone, Nokia, Deutsche Telekom, Britain's BT and Rakuten of Japan had pulled out, following in the footsteps of Intel, Facebook, Cisco and China's Vivo.

US planemaker Boeing warned that there was "no question" the outbreak would hammer the aviation industry and the broader economy.

The epidemic has threatened to harm the Chinese economy, the world's second-largest, with ANZ bank warning that China's first-quarter GDP growth would slow to 3.2-4.0 percent, down from a previous projection of 5.0 percent.

It has also disrupted sporting events in China: motorsport's governing body FIA announced the suspension of the Formula One Grand Prix in Shanghai, originally scheduled for April 19, due to the "continued spread" of the coronavirus.

And this week's Singapore Air Show – Asia's biggest – was badly hit by exhibitors withdrawing and low attendance.

Due to the impact of the virus, the OPEC oil cartel lowered its forecast for growth in global oil demand this year by nearly a fifth.