A senior mainland health official on Saturday said there had been just under 60,000 Covid-related deaths between December 8, 2022 and January 12.

Speaking at a State Council press conference in Beijing, Jiao Yahui said the deaths occurred in medical institutions across the country. Jiao, who is the head of the National Health Commission's Bureau of Medical Administration, said 5,503 people died of respiratory failure caused by Covid with 54,435 dying from underlying issues complicated by the coronavirus.

She said the average age of those who died was 80.3 years – with about 90.1 percent of fatalities being 65 or over, and about 56.5 percent being 80 or over.