Beijing: China witnessed a more than fivefold surge in the number of people diagnosed with Covid-19 at hospitals across the country since April. The Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released data that shows, it has reached more than 40 per cent of those tested at the end of May, reported The Straits Times.

According to government data, China was hit by a Covid-19 wave again in May which had a nearing positive test rate compared to the peak seen during the pandemic hit at the end of 2022.

China reported 164 deaths in May among those who contracted Covid-19. Moreover, as many as 2,777 suffered severe infections and the number kept increasing during the month, as per a report published in The Straits Times.

The Straits Times is an English-language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore.

The China CDC Covid-19 data for May affirmed anecdotal evidence of a second wave that was reported in local and social media. The report came more than a month after the agency last issued a weekly surveillance report at the end of April.

There has been a slight sign of extensive absenteeism at offices and factories. Moreover, the doctors reported that most of the illnesses are mild.

According to The Straits Times, an eminent Pulmonary Disease Expert and one of China's top Covid-19 advisers Dr Zhong Nanshan predicted that the second wave would peak at the end of June, possibly with over 65 million cases a week.

Furthermore, The Chinese authorities are rushing to push out vaccines to combat an ongoing new wave of the coronavirus that is expected to peak in June and infect as many as 65 million people a week since the new XBB variants of the virus are evolving to overcome the immunity developed after China's abrupt departure from its "Zero Covid" policy last year, The Washington Post reported in May.