The imported COVID-19 case from the UK reported in Qingdao, East China's Shandong province, is highly homologous with the recent strain of the novel coronavirus variant in the UK, according to a report published on Tuesday on the official WeChat account of the Health Commission of Shandong Province.

The result is based on whole gene sequencing analysis completed by the Shandong Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the report said.

This is the first imported case in Shandong caused by the variant of the novel coronavirus.