(Bloomberg) -- Wuhan, the Chinese city where the novel coronavirus emerged, will allow non-residents to leave, in the first easing of a lockdown that started a month ago to contain the epidemic at its epicenter.

People who are stuck in Wuhan but don’t reside there can travel from Monday as long as they are healthy and not quarantined, according to a city government statement posted on Weibo. Wuhan residents can also leave the city for specific reasons such as special medical treatment, it said.

The partial lifting of travel curbs on the city of 11 million people, who have been under a lockdown since Jan. 23, is a sign that China sees the viral outbreak, which has infected almost 80,000 people and shut down large parts of its economy, easing. The outbreak has been tentatively contained but hasn’t reached a turning point yet, according to China Central Television Friday.

The contagion that’s killed more than 2,500 continues to spread in Asia and parts of Europe, stoking fears of a pandemic. South Korea, China’s neighbor and the next hardest-hit country, has confirmed more than 763 cases and seven deaths.

The Wuhan and Hubei Health Commission did not immediately respond to phone calls seeking comments.

To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Claire Che in Beijing at yche16@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Rachel Chang at wchang98@bloomberg.net, Bhuma Shrivastava

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