China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) will loosen social distancing measures from Thursday, allowing some entertainment venues to reopen after daily new COVID-19 cases remained at single-digits on Tuesday.

Sophia Chan, Secretary for Food and Health of the HKSAR government, announced the decision at a press conference on Tuesday afternoon.

Gyms, beauty parlors, museums, and cinemas will be allowed to resume operation, and eateries can extend dine-in services to 10 p.m., with the cap on diners per table being raised from two to four, Chan said.

If the epidemic situation continues to improve, the government will also relax restrictions on group gatherings to allow groups of up to four people.

To fend off the risk of a resurgence of infections, additional anti-epidemic measures will be placed to eateries and entertainment venues involved, including virus tests for staff every two weeks, and customers are required to use the LeaveHomeSafe app or register personal information to get in.

Some indoor premises such as party rooms, nightclubs and karaoke lounges will continue to be closed.

An HKSAR government advisory panel on COVID-19 vaccines on Tuesday also said it would recommend Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, a move that brings it a step closer to being formally green-lighted in the Asian financial hub.

(With input from Xinhua, Reuters)