AKIPRESS.COM - Asian shares were mostly lower Thursday as reported cases of the new virus jumped in China, APNews reports.

The Shanghai Composite declined 0.7% to 2,906.07 in afternoon trading. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.3% to 27,730.00. Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed 0.1% lower at 23,827.73, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.2% to 7,103.20. Shares were lower in Singapore, Thailand and India, while New Zealand and Taiwan rose.

China reported more than 15,000 new cases of the COVID-19 disease and 254 more deaths. The jump was apparently due to a new reporting methodology.

Local officials have been widely criticized for their handling of the outbreak of the new form of coronavirus. The virus first surfaced in December in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, and has since spread to more than two dozen countries. China has replaced its top officials in Hubei and in Wuhan.