Hong Kong reports new imported COVID-19 case

HONG KONG, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's Center for Health Protection (CHP) reported one new imported case of COVID-19 on Tuesday, taking the total tally to 12,388.

The newly reported case involved a person arriving from India. A total of 40 cases have been reported in the past 14 days and all were imported, according to the CHP.

Hong Kong's vaccination drive is making steady progress. Since the launch of the government inoculation program in late February, around 4.68 million people, or 69.5 percent of the eligible population, have taken at least one dose of the vaccine, while around 4.48 million are fully vaccinated.

A booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine has been made available to eligible groups in Hong Kong. People with weak immunity and high risks of infection with the virus can receive their third dose.

A total of 49,931 people have taken the booster shot in Hong Kong as of 7:00 p.m. local time Monday.

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government expects the third-dose vaccination for the groups to cover about 1.86 million people.