A new human H7N9 avian flu case has been reported in Foshan City in south China's Guangdong Province, local authorities said.
The patient, a 41-year-old poultry vendor, is in critical condition and receiving medical treatment at a hospital in Foshan, said the city's Health and Family Planning Bureau.
Forty-six people who had close contact with the patient were put under medical observation and have not tested positive for the virus as of Friday.
Foshan City has announced it will close live poultry trading from the 16th to the 18th of every month from January until March.
Sporadic human H7N9 cases have been reported around the country and China's health authority has called for more efforts to prevent and control the spread of H7N9.
H7N9, a bird flu strain most likely to strike in winter and spring, was first reported in humans in China in March 2013.
