Asia Today: China, SKorea, Japan see upticks in virus cases

BEIJING (AP) — China reported more than 100 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday as the country continues to battle an outbreak in Xinjiang.

The 101 new cases was China's highest daily increase in weeks. The northwestern region of Xinjiang accounted for 89, with another eight in the northeastern province of Liaoning and one in Beijing. Another three cases were brought from outside the country by returning Chinese citizens.

Outside of Xinjiang, the virus has been largely contained in mainland China with the death toll from COVID-19 remaining at 4,634 among 84,060 cases registered since the pandemic first emerged from the central city of Wuhan late last year.

Hospitals are treating 482 people for the disease, with another 274 in isolation while being monitored for showing signs of infection or for having tested positive for the virus without displaying symptoms.

Xinjiang’s outbreak has centered on the region’s capital and largest city of Urumqi, where authorities have isolated some communities, restricted public transport and ordered widespread testing.

In other developments around the Asia-Pacific region:

— Vietnam's government said Wednesday it is stepping up measures against the coronavirus as the country's first domestic outbreak in more than three months continues to spread. Starting from a hospital in the popular beach city of Da Nang, 34 cases have been confirmed over the past five days, including an additional 12 on Wednesday. “The outbreak this time has a high risk of spreading to other big cities and provinces around Da Nang,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said at the government’s daily COVID-19 meeting. The cases confirmed Wednesday included an American who had been a patient last week at Da Nang hospital and his companion who then moved to another hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. One person in...