According to a statement issued by the National Health Commission on Wednesday, China has reported a slight decrease in the number of locally transmitted infections, with 152 daily cases, compared to the past three days.

Xi’an, the capital of northwestern Shaanxi province, on Tuesday registered a surge in cases since last weekend, with 151 cases, for the fourth day in a row, the statement said.

It added that 45 imported cases were found in 10 provincial-level regions.

The city of 13 million has been under strict lockdown since Thursday as the authorities launched the fourth round of PCR-based mass nucleic testing to cut the transmission of the infection.

Health experts estimated that the transmission may end by mid-January.

China has so far reported a total of 101,683 COVID-19 cases, including 4,636 deaths.