Pedestrians wearing face masks are seen at the Avenue of Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui of Hong Kong, Feb 23, 2020. (LI GANG/XINHUA)

HONG KONG - Hong Kong reported on Thursday 67 confirmed coronavirus cases, its largest daily spike in new infections since the outbreak started in the city in January.

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Among the 67 new cases, 63 were locally transmitted, the third time in about a week that the city’s new outbreak has breached previous highwater marks.

Of the total confirmed cases, more than half -- 35 -- were of unknown origins, said the city’s health department. The new outbreak has now infected over 300 people in less than two weeks, with more than a third of infections unlinked to confirmed cases or existing outbreaks, signaling that hidden chains of transmission are widespread.

The last time for Hong Kong to report a daily increase record of local infections since the latest COVID-19 outbreak was on Monday when 41 cases were recorded. Over the past two weeks, there were 355 new cases in Hong Kong.

The latest record came on the heels of Hong Kong implementing its strictest suite of social distancing measures as the government tries to keep the outbreak from spiraling out of control. Up until early this month, the financial hub was widely seen globally as a model of success in containing the virus, with only 15 cases of local transmission from May through June.

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Starting Wednesday, bars, gyms and beaches were shut, public gatherings were limited to four people, and people refusing to wear masks on public transportation were fined. Dining-in service in restaurants is banned between 6 pm and 5 am, a measure that’s extracting a toll on a population heavily reliant on eating out, given small apartments with little room for cooking.