Thailand confirms first human-to-human coronavirus transmission

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand has seen its first case of human-to-human transmission of the new coronavirus inside the country, a health official said on Friday.

The case is a Thai taxi driver, said Tanarak Pipat, deputy director-general of the Department of Disease Control.

"The Thai person who got infected does not have the record of travelling to China and it is likely that he was infected from a sick traveller from China," Tanarak said.

Thailand's previous cases have all been either Chinese tourists or Thais who had visited China, where the virus originated.

(Writing by Kay Johnson; editing by John Stonestreet)