The Beijing Health Commission said on Thursday that 13 new COVID-19 cases, all locally transmitted, were recorded on Wednesday, raising the total infections related to a local market cluster to 269 since June 11, when the first case was detected.

The 13 cases were reported in two districts in Beijing: Nine in Fengtai and four in Daxing.

Wednesday's new patients comprise of five males and eight females aged between 18 and 60. One of them is severely ill.

According to authority, six out of the 13 people worked at the Xinfadi wholesale market, five shopped there, one person came into close contact with a former confirmed case while another patient, a 60-year-old female, had no exposure history to the market nor contact with any confirmed COVID-19 patients.

There were no reports of suspected cases or asymptomatic cases in the Chinese capital during the period, the municipal commission added.

China registered a total of 14 locally transmitted cases on Wednesday, including 13 cases in Beijing and one case in neighboring Hebei Province.

The infected person in Hebei has had close contact with a patient related to Beijing's Xinfadi market cluster, according to local health authorities.

Officials punished over dereliction of duty 

Three officials in Beijing have been punished over dereliction of duty during the containment of COVID-19 in the capital city, the municipal authorities said on Wednesday.

Jia Qi, deputy director of the market supervision administration in Beijing's Fengtai District, was removed from the intra-Party post and received administrative dismissal, the city's discipline inspection and supervision authority said in a statement.

Cao Cong, deputy director of the health committee in the Fengtai District, and Yang Jijun, deputy head of Huaxiang Township in the Fengtai District, were given serious intra-Party warnings as well as administrative demotions.