China reports jump in number of people with virus

China's most festive holiday began in the shadow of a worrying new virus on Saturday as the death toll surpassed 40, an unprecedented lockdown kept 36 million people from travelling and authorities cancelled a host of Lunar New Year events.

The Chinese National Health Commission reported a jump in the number of people infected with the virus to 1,287 with 41 deaths.

The latest tally comes from 29 provinces across China, including 237 patients in serious condition.

All 41 deaths have been in China, including 39 in Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak, one in Hebei and one in Heilongjiang.

China's state broadcaster CCTV released a video of a 46-year-old man who they claimed was cured and discharged from a hospital on Friday in the city of Wenzhou of east Zhejiang province.

CCTV said the man, identified as Mr Yang, had been infected with the coronavirus after coming home from Wuhan on January 3.