* Chinese health authority said Monday it received reports of 31 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the Chinese mainland Sunday, of which 30 were imported. A total of 322 patients of COVID-19 were discharged from the hospital Sunday on the Chinese mainland, according to the National Health Commission. Altogether 75,770 patients had been discharged from the hospital after recovery by the end of Sunday, the commission said.

* The Lao government said Sunday that all international checkpoints will be closed for passengers exiting and entering Laos. However, goods transport is still permitted. Laos has detected eight confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Saturday afternoon.

* Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen on Monday ordered the closures of all casinos in the kingdom in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19. Cambodia has so far recorded a total of 107 confirmed cases of the virus, according to a Ministry of Health's statement, adding that 23 of them have recovered.

* Cuba on Saturday sent a team of 39 doctors and nurses to Andorra, the thirteenth medical brigade the country has dispatched overseas to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The medical help came as health authorities in Andorra have reported four deaths and a total of 308 confirmed cases due to the coronavirus outbreak.

* Singapore's Ministry of Health on Sunday reported 42 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total confirmed cases in the country to 844.

* Brunei reported six new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, bringing the country's total to 126.

* Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on Monday he plans to impose stricter limits on mobility between regions and also to implement a large-scale policy of social distancing to help curb the spread of coronavirus.

* US President Donald Trump said Sunday that the country is stepping up development of treatments for COVID-19 patients, including experiment on antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine and a blood-related therapy. Addressing a White House briefing, Trump said that hydroxychloroquine is being administered to 1,100 patients in New York along with Z-Pak, or azithromycin.

* Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Sunday that he will continue self-isolating after his wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau announced her recovery from COVID-19 Saturday. Trudeau also announced new funding of millions of dollars to help children, seniors and the homeless affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As of Sunday afternoon, there were 5,878 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 63 deaths in the country.

* The coronavirus outbreak has infected 2,599 more people and killed 292 others in France, as the country was struggling to contain "a deadly severe epidemic with a rapid-spreading contagious virus," General Director of Health Jerome Salomon said on Sunday. A total of 40,174 positive cases were confirmed, of which 2,606 died, while 19,354 others were hospitalized, up by 10 percent in the last 24 hours. However, 7,132 infected people have recovered since the virus has been spotted on Jan. 24.

* Japan's health ministry and local governments said that 1,896 people have been infected with the COVID-19 virus as of 12:00 p.m. local time on Monday, with cases in Tokyo spiking over the weekend despite a "soft" lockdown being requested for the capital.

* The death toll due to COVID-19 in India Sunday evening rose to 27 as the number of confirmed cases reached 1,024, the federal health ministry said. Indian government Wednesday (March 25) began a 21-day lockdown across the country in a bid to contain the spread of the pandemic. Authorities have imposed strict curfew-like restrictions to prevent the movement of people.

* The Republic of Korea's online food sale almost doubled last month as consumers refrained from outside activities on worry about the COVID-19 outbreak, a government report showed Monday. The ROK reported 78 more cases of COVID-19 compared to 24 hours ago as of midnight Monday local time, raising the total number of infections to 9,661.

* Moscow residents will not be allowed to leave their apartments unless for exceptional reasons from Monday, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Sunday. Russia has registered 270 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, the sharpest daily increase so far, raising the total number to 1,543, of which 1,014 cases were confirmed in Moscow.

* Japan has kept unchanged its target, set in 2015, of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 26 percent by the year ending in March 2031 from levels seen in the year ended March 2014, the environment ministry said on Monday. The ministry maintained the target in a five-year review.

* The number of COVID-19 cases in Australia has surpassed 4,000 despite a significantly lower rate of transmission. It represents an increase of only 7.4 percent from 3,809 cases on Sunday morning and reflects a wider trend, with cases increasing by approximately 10 percent per day since Thursday. By comparison, for most of March the number of cases in Australia increased by approximately 20-25 percent every day.

* At least 18 security force members and one civilian were killed in Taliban militants' attacks in two Afghan provinces on Sunday night, authorities said on Monday.

* Over 2,000 people were dispatched to put out a forest fire in southwest China's Sichuan Province, a local fire department said. The fire started at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday in Muli County, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture. It is estimated that the fire has spread over 15 hectares. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

* Brazil's Health Ministry on Sunday said that the country has registered a total of 4,256 confirmed COVID-19 cases with the death toll rising to 136. In the past 24 hours, at least 22 patients have died with 352 new cases confirmed, the ministry said.

* Some 19 days after the detection of its first case of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Bolivia on Sunday reported its first fatality from the disease and a total of 81 people who have tested positive.

* The death toll from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has hit 57 in Ecuador, with 1,890 people testing positive, the deputy minister of health, Julio Lopez, said on Sunday.

* The Slovenian government on Sunday adopted a new stimulus package worth roughly EUR3 billion (US$3.34 billion) to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus epidemic. The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Slovenia rose by 46 to 730 by Sunday. It has 11 coronavirus-related deaths.

* Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis on Sunday called on US President Donald Trump to introduce mandatory wearing of the mask in public to help curb COVID-19 spreading. The Czech Republic put into effect of the measure of obligatory wearing a face mask in public ten days ago.

* Greece reported a total of 38 fatalities linked to complications due to the novel coronavirus out of a total of 1,156 confirmed infections, health authorities said at a regular press briefing on Sunday.

* A total of 19,522 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Britain as of Sunday morning, marking an increase of 2,433 in the past 24 hours, according to the Department of Health and Social Care. As of Saturday afternoon, some 1,228 patients who tested positive for COVID-19 have died, said the department.

* The total number of COVID-19 cases in Turkey climbed to 9,217, while the death toll has reached 131, the Turkish health minister tweeted Sunday.

* Israel reported two new death cases from the novel coronavirus, bringing the death toll to 15, the Ministry of Health said Sunday. The total confirmed cases in Israel reached 4,247, after 628 new cases were detected on Sunday.

* Jordan on Sunday confirmed the second death of the novel coronavirus among the 259 total infection cases.

* The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced 102 new COVID-19 cases and one death case on Sunday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 570, the Ministry of Health and Prevention said in a statement.

* Rwanda's health ministry on Sunday reported 10 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total in the central African country to 70.

* The total number of COVID-19 infections in South Africa has risen to 1,280, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Sunday. South Africa has the largest number of COVID-19 cases on the African continent and is currently in a 21-day national lockdown.

* The Egyptian Health Ministry announced on Sunday 33 new cases of COVID-19, raising the total number of cases in the country to 609, including 40 deaths.