China Bird Flu Deaths Rise to Six as Shanghai Culls Birds

China’s death toll from a new strain of bird flu rose to six people as Shanghai began slaughtering birds at a local market and concerns of an outbreak sparked the biggest drop in Hong Kong stocks in more than eight months.

The latest death was of a 64-year-old man in Zhejiang province, the local health bureau said today. None of the 55 people who had close contact with him has shown symptoms of infection, the agency said on its website. Another 67-year-old in Zhejiang is in critical condition, according to the World Health Organization. Of the 16 confirmed human infections of the H7N9 strain of avian influenza, six are in Shanghai, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.