The Ministry of Health resumed its daily public information releases about SARS on Friday.

In the 24 hours to 10 am on Friday, there was neither a confirmed nor suspected case of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) on the Chinese mainland, a ministry spokesman said.

"We are restoring the reporting now just because there have been some rumors about new SARS cases being found in some regions of China, and we want to give the public clear and authoritative information about the SARS surveillance,'' Deng Haihua, the Ministry of Health's spokesman said.

In fact, the daily reporting mechanism has been maintained within health departments and hospitals at all levels even though no information was being released.

And a complete information network and quick response system have been established by China's health authorities in order to fight the flu-like disease adequately if it returns.

Reports will be published at 4 pm each day on the ministry's website, www.moh.gov.cn, Deng noted.

(China Daily September 20, 2003)