Surprise China data raises pneumonia toll

The Beijing city health department said in a statement eight people — all from either Hong Kong or the province of Shanxi — had contracted the disease and three died. But it said the disease had not spread into the city of 14 million.

The government of Guangdong, which borders Hong Kong, said in a statement 792 people had contracted atypical pneumonia in the southern province by the end of February.

In Guangzhou, the provincial capital of 10 million people, 24 had died and 680 had contracted the disease. World Health Organisation officials said that although the Guangdong outbreak was ‘‘very similar’’ to the mystery pneumonia that has killed 19 people around the world, it was too early to say if the two were the same disease.

The killer virus has spread to Hong Kong, Vietnam, Singapore, Canada and Germany. Suspected cases have been reported in the US, Britain and Australia. Officials in Canada identified on Tuesday another eight cases. (Reuters)