France reports new confirmed case of coronavirus, tally now at 18

One more person has been infected with the coronavirus in France, putting the tally at 18 in the country, the French Health minister said on Wednesday.

"There is no epidemic in the country, just isolated cases", Olivier Veran said during a press conference, adding that 15 million protection masks would be made available.

Health ministry director Jerome Salomon added that out of the 18 cases, two people had died, 12 were cured and four were still hospitalized.