SINGAPORE - There were no new cases of the Wuhan virus infection reported on Sunday (Feb 2), said the Ministry of Health in a statement.

This means the total number of confirmed cases here remains at 18, including two Singaporeans. None of them is critically ill, added the ministry. "All of them remain in stable condition, and most are improving," it said.

As of 12pm on Sunday, the MOH had identified 251 close contacts of the confirmed cases. Of the 182 who are still in Singapore, 179 have been contacted and are being quarantined or isolated. Efforts are ongoing to contact the remaining three people.

The coronavirus, known as 2019-nCov, first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December last year and has so far proved to be more infectious than the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars).

As of Sunday, the outbreak had sickened more than 14,000 and killed 304 worldwide, with the Philippines reporting the first death caused by the virus outside of China. The deceased was a 44-year-old Wuhan resident who travelled from China to the Philippines. Most of the deaths occurred in central Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak.

In the wake of the outbreak, a growing number of countries including Italy, the United States, Australia, Singapore, Japan and Russia have put in place travel restrictions. Germany, France and the US have evacuated citizens from China.

Several major airlines have also halted flights to and from China, deepening concerns of a widespread economic slowdown.

In Singapore, measures to combat the outbreak include mask distribution at residents' committee centres and community centres island-wide, which began on Saturday.

The Government announced on Jan 30 that all 1.3 million households in Singapore would be given a pack of four masks each amid reports of shops running out of stocks.