MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has decided to ease a mild coronavirus lockdown in the capital and four outlying provinces to further reopen the country’s battered economy despite having the most reported infections in Southeast Asia.

Most businesses, including shopping malls and dine-in restaurants, and church services will be allowed to partially resume on Wednesday with masks and social distancing required.

Duterte reimposed a mild lockdown two weeks ago in metropolitan Manila and the nearby provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal, a region of about 25 million people, after doctors' groups warned that hospitals were being overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients.

The Philippines has reported more than 164,000 cases, including 2,681 deaths.

Duterte’s administration has been under intense pressure to revive the economy, which fell into recession in the second quarter as millions of people lost their jobs.

Duterte, 75, used his televised appearance to deny rumors that he had fallen ill and was flown out of the country over the weekend for treatment. “Stop this nonsense about me going to Singapore,” he said.

In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:

— South Korea will ban large public gatherings and shut churches and nightspots in the greater capital area following a surge in coronavirus cases. Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said tighter social distancing restrictions for the Seoul metropolitan area — home to around half of the country’s 51 million people — was inevitable because a failure to slow transmissions there could result in a major nationwide outbreak. The measures in Seoul and nearby Gyeonggi province and the city of Incheon prohibit gatherings of more than 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors. Nightclubs, karaoke rooms, buffet restaurants and computer gaming cafes will be shut, while churches must shift worship services online. South Korea reported 246 new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, raising its total for the last five days to 959.

— India has reported another 55,079 new coronavirus cases. The Health Ministry on Tuesday also reported 826 deaths in the past 24 hours, taking total fatalities to 51,797. India now has the fourth most fatalities behind the United States, Brazil and Mexico. Nevertheless, its deaths per million people stand at 34, far lower than what has been reported in some North American and European countries. India has been recording at least 50,000 new infections per day since mid-July. It has now reported 2.7 million infections.

— Australia’s coronavirus hot spot, Victoria state, reported its lowest number of new infections in a month. It reported 222 new cases Tuesday, its lowest since July 18. It also reported 17 deaths following a record 25 fatalities Monday. Infections have been trending down after a second lockdown was imposed in the state capital, Melbourne, in early August. An epidemiologist said 99% of the second wave of infections can be traced to returned travelers quarantined in two Melbourne hotels. Charles Alpren was testifying at a state government-appointed inquiry into failures in a quarantine system that required Australians returning from overseas to isolate in Melbourne hotels for two weeks.