KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia reported 629 new coronavirus cases on Friday (Oct 16), raising its cumulative tally of infections to 18,758, the health ministry said.

The South-east Asian country also recorded six deaths, bringing total fatalities to 176, media reported.

More than a third of Malaysia's population has been placed under movement restrictions for two weeks as coronavirus cases continue to soar in the country following a recent outbreak from a state election.

The conditional movement control order (CMCO) for the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, and Selangor state - the country's most populous region and main economic hub - began on Wednesday and will last until Oct 27.

The entire state of Sabah, which had the state election that led to the upsurge of infections, also came under CMCO, beginning at midnight on Tuesday.

The latest wave was caused by the two-week campaigning that preceded the Sept 26 Sabah state polls, which drew politicians and election workers from all over Malaysia to the country's easternmost state.

At that time, Sabah was already suffering from a coronavirus upsurge after an outbreak at a detention centre for illegal migrants.