The Saudi health ministry reiterated on Monday that no case of coronavirus was recorded in the Kingdom. Health Minister Tawfiq Al Rabiah told a press conference that more than 290 suspected cases have been tested, but no coronavirus infection confirmed. Neighboring Kuwait announced 10 new cases, bringing the total number to 56. A ministry official, who was speaking during a news conference broadcast on state television, urged citizens to avoid gatherings to avoid spreading the virus in the Gulf state. In Bahrain, two oil and gas conferences, which were scheduled to take place this month, have been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak. The annual Middle East Petroleum and Gas Conference (MPGC), at which the regions oil traders meet, has been postponed to the second half of the year due to travel restrictions and health concerns, the organizers said on Monday. Another energy conference, GEO 2020, which was due to be held on March 16-19, was postponed until Sept. 14-17. Bahrain has reported 47 cases of the coronavirus infection. Airlines have been suspending flights or modifying services in response to the outbreak. The pathogen is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. The World Health Organization (WHO) says the virus appears to particularly hit those over the age of 60 and people already weakened by other illness. It has a mortality rate ranging between two and five percent. Infections are now rising faster abroad than in China, as the countrys drastic measures, including quarantining some 56 million people in Hubei province since late January, appear to be paying off.