Taiwan did not report any new cases of COVID-19 for a sixth consecutive day on Wednesday, keeping the total at 440 since the pandemic began late last year, Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported according to the Central Epidemic Command Centre (CECC).

It was also the 31st straight day that no domestically transmitted infections were recorded in Taiwan, said Health Minister, Chen Shih-chung who heads the CECC, at a daily press briefing.

Of the 129 people who returned from India on a specially arranged flight earlier this month, one developed respiratory symptoms and was sent to the hospital while the others are still being quarantined, the CECC said.

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 disease late last year, 349 of Taiwan's 440 cases have been classified as imported and 55 as local infections, according to CECC statistics.

The other 36 cases resulted from a cluster infection on a Navy vessel that returned April 9 from a Pacific goodwill mission, and those cases have yet to be classified as either local or imported, CECC data showed.

To date, 375 COVID-19 patients in Taiwan have recovered, seven have died, and the others are in the hospital, the CECC said. -- BERNAMA