China reports COVID-19 activity at moderate level

COVID-19 rates in China are at a moderate level after a recent rise, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday.

For the week beginning July 20, the COVID-19 positivity rate among influenza-like illness cases at sentinel hospitals nationwide reached 20.3 percent, up by four percentage points from the previous week and ranking first among all respiratory diseases under surveillance, according to data.

The positivity rate was higher in southern provinces than in northern regions, with the most affected age group being those between 15 and 59.

The China CDC said that COVID-19 has become a common respiratory illness that tends to trigger one to two epidemic fluctuations each year. The current uptick is a normal periodic fluctuation and its intensity is similar to that seen in the previous two years.

The vast majority of infections are mild cases, it added.

The China CDC noted that the elderly and those with chronic, underlying conditions remain at higher risk of developing severe illness, but targeted and effective therapies are available.

The center also stressed that no variant strains posing a significant public health risk have been detected, and that wider medical care has not been affected by the recent increase in infections.