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Asia Today: Hong Kong limits gatherings to 2, orders testing

HONG KONG (AP) - Hong Kong is limiting most gatherings to just two people and ordering compulsory testing of workers at retirement homes and facilities for people with disabilities, among tightening measures to contain a new wave of the coronavirus.

The semi-autonomous southern Chinese city reported 82 news cases on Wednesday, all but 10 of them listed as having been transmitted among residents. Since Nov. 17, it has reported more than 1,000 confirmed cases, only a few of which were brought from outside the city.

That is prompting the government to raise penalties for failing to follow orders on mask-wearing in public and for compulsory tests.

Exceptions were made for some group gatherings, including a limit of 20 people for weddings and shareholder meetings, but religious activities and group travel would no longer be exempt.

Hong Kong and Singapore, meanwhile, have called off a planned travel bubble until next year in response to the surge in Hong Kong cases.

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Follow AP's coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak

Women wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus walk along a pedestrian bridge in Beijing, Monday, Nov. 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Andy Wong) The Associated Press
Women wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus head for work during the morning rush hour in Beijing, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Andy Wong) The Associated Press
People wearing face masks to protect against the spread of the coronavirus walk through China Town in Yokohama, Kanagawa prefecture, near Tokyo, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara) The Associated Press
A woman wearing a face mask to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, uses her computer on a street in Hong Kong, Monday, Nov. 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung) The Associated Press
People wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus wait outside a bakery in Hong Kong, Monday, Nov. 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung) The Associated Press
A couple wearing face masks to protect against the coronavirus embrace on a street in Hong Kong, Monday, Nov. 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung) The Associated Press
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