OSLO: Norwegians should wear face masks in public transport in and near Oslo amid a rise in COVID-19 cases, the country's government said on Friday.

Until now, authorities in Norway had refrained from recommending wearing face masks in public.

"We recommend face masks as an extra precaution when it is difficult to maintain a distance of one metre (one yard) on public transport," Norway's Health Minister Bent Hoie told a news conference.