Singapore tightens COVID-19 curbs as overseas virus variants detected

SINGAPORE — Singapore announced on Tuesday tighter curbs on social gatherings and stricter border measures after recording locally acquired cases of coronavirus variants, including a strain first detected in India.

After reporting very few local infections for months, numbers have increased over the last week, mainly linked to an outbreak at a hospital. On Tuesday, it confirmed five new locally acquired cases.

Though the cases are only a fraction of the number being reported among Singapore's Southeast Asian neighbors, a jump in infections would be a setback for the Asian business hub, which has successfully contained its earlier outbreaks. — Reuters