During the past week, the central government abolished most Covid control measures, although local authorities in several cities are still implementing more strict rules. Passengers can now travel all over China without needing PCR tests before departure or after arrival at their destination. Anecdotal evidence suggests the number of Covid cases is rising rapidly.
Official figures show a decrease of the number of positive Covid cases. However as PCR tests are no longer required to travel in China or to access most public places, the number of people testing frequently has decreased and with it the number of reported cases. Compound management and street committees also no longer require persons who tested positive to report their condition.
Experts said that the virulence and pathogenicity of the Omicron variant and its branches are significantly reduced compared with the original strain. Residents in Beijing no longer are required to present a negative nucleic acid test before entering supermarkets, office buildings, parks and other public venues, and they only need to scan their health codes. But a negative PCR test from within the past 48 hours is still needed to enter restaurants, bars and other enclosed entertainment venues. On the basis of the ninth edition of China’s Covid-19 control protocols and newly released 20 measures, Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen have all abolished or optimized measures. China also approved 4 new Covid-19 vaccines for emergency use, as authorities consider to make available a second booster shot. The new vaccines include three recombinant protein-based vaccines, as well as a nasal spray influenza virus vector vaccine, developed by SinoCellTech, Clover Biophamaceuticals, Wantai BioPharm and WestVac Biopharms. The vaccine developed by Wantai is the first nasal spray vaccine in the world to be approved for clinical trials. There are 12 Covid-19 vaccines available in China, including five inactivated vaccines, four recombinant protein vaccines, one adenovirus shot, one recombinant inhalable vaccine, and one nasal spray influenza virus vector vaccine. The Chinese authorities are considering downgrading Covid-19 from the top class of infectious diseases, which would relieve local governments of the legal obligations to introduce strong controls such as lockdowns and isolating positive cases. The downgrade would allow Covid-19 be managed more flexibly and in a less disruptive way.
In Beijing and other cities, passengers can enter airports without having to present a negative PCR test, they only need to scan their health code when entering the terminal. Bookings of airline tickets have increased substantially on all platforms.
In some cities, residents suspecting they experience symptoms are advised to check themselves with rapid antigen test kits. If they have symptoms, including a high body temperature, they were advised to quarantine at home, use flu-relief medicine, and drink a lot of water. China has approved over 30 different makes of Covid-19 antigen test kits. People are also stocking up on medicine thought to be useful in curing Covid, such as the common cold medicine Lianhua Qingwen, the anti-inflammatory drug Ibuprofen and vitamin C tablets. Sales of antigen test kits also surged.
In response to a question about whether China will adjust epidemic measures for international arrivals, National Health Commission (NHC) Spokesperson Mi Feng said the latest optimization mainly targets domestic epidemic control work and China will gradually optimize measures for international arrivals.
British companies in China are calling for clarity on recently relaxed coronavirus restrictions to help reverse pessimism among businesses and clear up lingering uncertainties, the British Chamber of Commerce in China said. Uncertainty and unpredictability remain, both in regards to controls and transparency of the business environment, said Alexandra Hirst, Senior Policy Analyst at the Chamber. “Opening up feels like there’s an end in sight, we are seeing a shift in strategy, she said. “But there are also still concerns in the short term about what this means and how this is going to impact operations such as the risk of staff now testing positive, and how implementation will be on a local level. “But the hope is that if certainty and clarity can be given about what it will look like, business operations will eventually be able to get back to normal.”
Employing foreign staff is the biggest challenge for multinationals given the difficulty in entering China, according to the “British Business in China: Sentiment Survey”, which was released last week. The report surveyed 292 British companies in the Chinese mainland. Only half of the companies reported being able to recruit enough talent this year, while 27% said they were satisfied with foreign staffing. Concerns over quarantine, volatile travel restrictions and the high costs to meet Chinese rules were weighing on business sentiment. The report said a record high of 42% of businesses are pessimistic about their prospects for next year, jumping from 9% in the previous survey.
According to an article in the China Daily, nucleic acid testing companies have recently faced an unprecedented crisis of trust. There is even a saying that “the Covid-19 pandemic will only stop when the nucleic acid testing stops”, as it is widely believed that the testing companies are “the umbrella sellers who have the power to call for rain”. Falsification of test results by a few testing companies is threatening to undo all the efforts to control the epidemic over three years. In response to the doubts of the public, it is necessary to conduct an in-depth analysis of the nucleic acid testing system, and strengthen supervision over the companies doing nucleic acid testing. As the demand for tests has increased in recent months, more testing has been carried out by private companies to alleviate the pressure on public health institutions. This has enabled some companies to take risks to falsify results in order to make a fat profit. But nucleic acid testing should be a non-market activity aimed at preventing the spread of the virus, the article states.
This overview is based on reports by the China Daily, Shanghai Daily, Global Times and South China Morning Post.
