![]() A strict lockdown this week in the largest city and commercial hub, Shanghai, led to protests over lack of food and medical services.Ĭhina on Tuesday reported 1,717 cases of local transmission, 52 of them in Liaoning province where Dalian is located. Previous lockdowns have seen tens of millions confined to their homes, sometimes for weeks. “Preventing the risk of economic stall should be the priority task,” the thinktank said in a report titled It’s Time for China to Adjust Its Virus Control and Prevention Policies. The Anbound Research Center said President Xi Jinping’s government needed to focus on restoring growth like the United States, Europe and Japan. On Monday a Chinese thinktank made a rare public display of dissent, saying the curbs – which have shut down cities and disrupted trade, travel and industry – must change to prevent an “economic stall”. The World Health Organization has called China’s policy unsustainable. ![]() Masking and regular testing are standard and close contacts can be forcibly transported to field hospitals. ![]() Partial lockdowns have been imposed on other cities such as Chengdu in the south-west, Shenyang in the north-east and Jishui in the south-east.Ĭhina’s “zero-Covid” policy contrasts with other countries’ gradual easing of restrictions combined with vaccinations, medication and voluntary isolation.Ĭhina has largely kept its borders closed to foreign visitors, requiring any to submit to more than a week of quarantine in hotels where sanitary conditions are often poor. “And even if they are avoided, we expect growth to remain subdued going forward.”īeijing has been relatively unaffected although travel in and out of the capital has been discouraged and residents are subject to testing on an almost daily basis. “For now, the resulting disruption appears modest, but the threat of damaging lockdowns is growing,” said Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior China economist at Capital Economics. Sporadic Covid-19 lockdowns around China have dampened consumer enthusiasm and business confidence, while searing temperatures across large parts of the country this summer prompted power rationing for factories.Īccording to Capital Economics, 41 cities, responsible for 32% of China’s GDP, are currently in the midst of outbreaks – the highest number since April. The closely watched purchasing managers’ index, a key gauge of manufacturing activity in the world’s second-biggest economy, came in at 49.4 in August, up from July’s 49.0 but still below the 50-point mark separating growth from contraction, the national bureau of statistics said. The closures came as data released on Wednesday showed more signs that China’s economy is being held back by the strict zero-Covid strategy. Bus and subway services in the district were also reduced. The city also ordered all kindergartens and primary, middle and high schools in the district to delay resuming the new term and halt offline sessions that have already started, according to state media reports on Wednesday. Guangzhou, a city of nearly 19 million people near Hong Kong, reported just five locally transmitted infections for Tuesday but authorities ordered certain areas in one district to close indoor entertainment venues and dining at restaurants until Saturday. ![]() ![]() In Shenzhen, at least four districts with around 9 million residents in total, have already ordered closure of entertainment and cultural businesses and halted or reduced restaurant dining for a few days. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |