A total of 79 new confirmed cases were reported on Monday outside Hubei, according to figures released by the commission. A total of 890 new cases were reported outside Hubei on February 3.

The commission said it received reports of nearly 1,900 new confirmed cases in China on Monday.

Chinese officials said on Monday that  they are using infusions of blood plasma from people who have recovered from the coronavirus to treat those still battling the infection and some encouraging preliminary results have been reported. A top emergency expert at the World Health Organization (WHO) later said that using convalescent plasma was a "very valid" approach to test, but that it was important to get the timing right to maximize the benefit to  patient immunity.

The Cambodian Ministry of Health said in a statement late on Monday that nearly half of the more than 2,200 people on board the Westerdam cruise ship had been allowed to disembark from the ship in the last three days. The remaining passengers are undergoing a health check. The Ministry said that so far no Cambodian citizen has tested positive for the virus.