BEIJING (XINHUA) - The ratings of television programmes related to epidemic prevention and control have continued to rise, while news programmes have seen the biggest gains, said China's National Radio and Television Administration.

Chinese people spent about seven hours per day watching TV from Jan 25 to Feb 9, during which the country was fighting against the outbreak of the coronavirus, figures released by the administration showed.

The broadcasting time of epidemic-related programmes on national satellite TV channels on Feb 1 was 14.6 times longer than that on Jan 25.

The ratings of the evening news on local satellite TV channels across China have increased significantly, with ratings in 12 provinces up more than 50 per cent, according to the data.

The ratings of the evening news on satellite TV in the hardest-hit Hubei Province have gone up 531 per cent, and the number of viewers has increased 906 per cent, the data showed.