BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese health authority said Friday it received reports of eight new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection and seven deaths on the Chinese mainland on Thursday.

Among the deaths, six were in Hubei Province and one in Shandong Province, according to the National Health Commission.

Meanwhile, 33 new suspected cases were reported, said the commission.

Also on Thursday, 1,318 people were discharged from hospital after recovery, while the number of severe cases decreased by 237 to 4,020.

The overall confirmed cases on the mainland had reached 80,813 by the end of Thursday, including 13,526 patients who were still being treated, 64,111 patients who had been discharged after recovery, and 3,176 people who died of the disease.

The commission said that 147 people were still suspected of being infected with the virus.

The commission added that 12,161 close contacts were still under medical observation. On Thursday, 2,483 people were discharged from medical observation.

Three imported cases were reported on the mainland Thursday. Among them, two were reported in Shanghai and one in Beijing. By the end of Thursday, 88 imported cases had been reported, said the commission.

By the end of Thursday, 131 confirmed cases including three deaths had been reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), 10 confirmed cases in the Macao SAR, and 49 in Taiwan including one death.

A total of 75 patients in Hong Kong, 10 in Macao and 20 in Taiwan had been discharged from hospital after recovery.  ■