The number of daily Covid-19 cases in China has been steadily increasing over the past two weeks. Confirmed cases increased from 75 on March 1 to 3507 on March 15. There are also more than a thousand asymptomatic cases reported daily. Health experts have attributed the surge of asymptomatic infections to the traits of the Omicron variant and the high vaccination rates that protect against symptoms. More than 26 provincial-level regions were affected by Covid-19 outbreaks in the past month.
The high-tech metropolis of Shenzhen with 17 million inhabitants has been put in lockdown following the detection of more than 432 cases since February 15, including asymptomatic cases. Transport services have been suspended, stores and businesses closed – except essential ones – and several rounds of city-wide testing launched. The measures will be in effect till March 20.
So far, Jilin province and Qingdao in Shandong province have reported the most infections during this latest outbreak. Jilin has reported more than 1,000 daily infections and the capital Changchun is in lockdown. As a university in Jilin city has emerged as a hotspot, the provincial government said it has set up a task force devoted to intensify testing, sanitization and supplies of materials on campus to curb the contagion’s spread. Changchun, capital of Jilin province, has finished a first round of city-wide testing after reporting 48 Covid-19 cases. Three more testing rounds will follow. At least 26 government officials – including the Mayor of Jilin city – have recently been dismissed for poor performance in handling the epidemic in cities in Guangdong, Jilin and Shandong provinces.
Shanghai and Beijing are also dealing with local clusters. The Shanghai government said that the source of the recent outbreak has been traced to venues contaminated by imported infections, and management oversights caused local transmissions to spread. This month, Shanghai reported more than 300 infections, compared to only 400 cases and seven deaths in the two years before the latest wave, with the majority being asymptomatic cases. Beginning on March 12, all primary and high schools in the city began giving only online classes. Kindergartens, nurseries and after-school education institutions in the city also suspended offline operations. Several office and residential buildings in Shanghai are under lockdown.
Beijing has urged residents not to leave the city unless necessary, although the number of new daily cases remained in the single digits. “With the pandemic still spreading quickly in many foreign nations and outbreaks also being reported in some domestic cities, Beijing is still facing dual risks from both domestic cities and foreign nations and regions,” Pang Xinghuo, Deputy Director of the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention told a news conference. Beijing's health authorities said they will further expand nucleic acid testing as the capital currently stands “at a critical stage of epidemic control.” A total of 30 cases have been reported in the recent Covid-19 outbreak since March 7 in five districts of the city, with six imported transmission chains from other cities. Multiple infections have also resulted from family gatherings and public dining.
Hong Kong continues its battle with Covid as about 300,000 residents are in home quarantine. Six more Covid clinics will start operations this week. Health authorities reported 32,430 new positive cases on March 13, compared with 27,647 on March 12 and 29,381 on March 11. Authorities reported 264 deaths on March 13. However, the number of new cases is still lower than the peak of over 50,000 daily infections in early March. Businesspeople predict a wave of closures and bankruptcies if businesses cannot reopen as expected on April 21 due to the postponement of mass testing. The Hong Kong government also sent out an unprecedented emergency alert with an audio alarm in both English and Chinese informing residents about the conversion of Queen Elizabeth Hospital into a designated Covid-19 facility.
The National Health Commission (NHC) announced that China will begin using Covid-19 antigen tests as a supplementary diagnostic tool to improve early detection. Compared to nucleic acid testing – the dominant tool widely deployed in the country’s mass testing campaigns – the rapid, at-home antigen tests give results more quickly but are generally less accurate. “Confirming infections still requires a nucleic acid test. Antigen testing can be used as an additional measure to screen target groups and improve our capability to detect new infections swiftly,” the Commission said. Antigen tests will be available in retail drugstores and online shops.
China will strive to adopt a more scientific and precise approach to coping with Covid-19 based on changes in the pandemic situation and the characteristics of new variants, Premier Li Keqiang said. The goal is safeguarding lives, protecting people’s health, maintaining normal production and stabilizing industrial and supply chains, Li said. He added that the coronavirus – the enemy of all humankind – is still changing, and much remains to be learned, such as the protective effects of vaccines and research into drugs. He said the international community should make joint efforts to create conditions for the world to return to normal. “China has opened fast track lanes and green corridors to ensure the normal running of companies and projects in key areas,” he said. “We will continue to accumulate experience and be adaptive to new developments so as to maintain the flow of goods and personnel.” Premier Li did not directly respond to a question on whether China had a road map for reopening to the world, or how long Beijing thought its zero-Covid policy was going to be sustainable. Currently, more than 87% of the Chinese population has been vaccinated, most with inactivated vaccines.
This overview is based on reports by the Guardian, China Daily, Global Times and South China Morning Post.
