BEIJING, Feb. 16 (Xinhua)-Chinese health authority Sunday said it received reports of 2,009 new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection and 142 deaths on Saturday from 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.

Among the deaths, 139 were in Hubei Province, two in Sichuan, and one in Hunan, according to the National Health Commission.

Another 1,918 new suspected cases were reported Saturday, said the commission.

Also on Saturday, 219 patients became seriously ill, while 1,323 people were discharged from hospital after recovery.

The overall confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland had reached 68,500 by the end of Saturday, and 1,665 people had died of the disease.

The commission added that 11,272 patients remained in severe condition, and 8,228 people were suspected of being infected with the virus.

A total of 9,419 people had been discharged from hospital after recovery.

The commission said 529,418 close contacts had been traced, adding that among them, 29,788 were discharged from medical observation Saturday, with 158,764 others still under medical observation.

By the end of Saturday, 56 confirmed cases including one death had been reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), 10 confirmed cases in the Macao SAR, and 18 in Taiwan.

One patient in Hong Kong, three in Macao and two in Taiwan have been discharged from hospital after recovery.   ■