BEIJING — The Chinese mainland, excluding Hubei province, reported no new indigenous cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on March 7 and 8, said the country's health authorities on March 9.

The daily number of the newly confirmed indigenous cases on the mainland outside Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak, has been in single digits since Feb 27, said Mi Feng, an official with the National Health Commission, at a press conference.

The situation of epidemic prevention and control in China continues to improve, Mi said, noting that there were no new confirmed cases in all cities except Hubei's capital city of Wuhan for four consecutive days.

In Wuhan, the number of newly confirmed cases dropped to below 50 for two days, the official said.

China will focus on strict prevention and control and medical treatment for the next step to prevent the outbreak from rebounding, Mi added.