Shanghai's two-month lockdown is to end on June 1, as the number of new cases has been dropping steadily. Lifting of the lockdown will be gradual with the aim to have business activities and daily life fully restored by the end of the month. “The current epidemic situation in the city continues to stabilize and improve,” said Yin Xin, Spokeswoman for the city government. Total deaths since the coronavirus outbreak started on March 1 stood at 588, or 0.09% of the 626,300 people infected in Shanghai.
The city is set to miss the economic growth target of 5.5% for 2022 due to the lockdown that began on April 1, which has caused huge losses in industrial production and consumer spending. In April, Shanghai’s industrial output plunged 61.6% from a year ago to CNY136.4 billion, while consumer spending was valued at CNY71.7 billion, down 46.3% year-on-year. Shanghai authorities on May 29 rolled out a total of 50 stimulus measures to support the local economy, with a focus on business resumption and employment stabilization.
Economists said the recovery of the city's economy could take two or three months to return to pre-epidemic levels. In terms of employment, the city will give companies subsidies with a maximum amount of CNY3 million to help them maintain jobs. Companies that hire new graduates or unemployed people will get a subsidy of CNY2,000 per person. In terms of consumption, the city will add 40,000 non-commercial vehicle licenses to the total quota this year, as well as giving a CNY10,000 subsidy to consumers who replace old cars with electric cars. Other measures include reducing land and property taxes for qualified companies and starting eight or more urban village renovation projects this year.
People entering public places and residential areas have a legal obligation to have their health info checked in Shanghai and allows venue managers or operators to deny entrance if someone fails to cooperate. The law was passed by the 40th meeting of the Standing Committee of the 15th Shanghai People's Congress. The collected personal information shall only be used for epidemic prevention and control, and cannot be disclosed to third parties, according to the law.
The first makeshift hospital built to fight Shanghai’s recent outbreak of Covid-19 was closed after helping 25,658 people recover. With a capacity of over 7,000 beds, the temporary hospital was established in the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center on March 25 to treat asymptomatic and mild cases. High school students in grades 11 and 12 in Shanghai can return to school from June 6, and Grade 9 students will return on June 13, the Shanghai Education Commission announced. College and senior high school entrance exams have been postponed from June to July.
Beijing has basically cut off new transmission chains amid the Covid-19 outbreak is coming under increasing control, Liu Xiaofeng, Deputy Director of the Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said at a news conference. Beijing reported seven new locally transmitted cases in the 24 hours up to 3 pm on May 29, bringing the total number of infections since April 22 to 1,730. Beijing has not detected locally transmitted cases outside locked down and controlled areas for two consecutive days. The Beijing Health Commission and the district government launched an investigation into a local hospital and the Beijing Emergency Medical Center’s Shunyi branch following the death of a patient due to delayed medical treatment.
Wang Hong, a Vice Mayor of Beijing, and Yu Luming, Director of the Beijing Health Commission, were removed from their position by the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal People's Congress. The National Supervisory Commission and the Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said Yu was suspected of “serious violation of discipline and law”, which is a catchphrase for corruption.
University students in Beijing have been allowed to leave closed campuses and return home when finishing their exams after hundreds vented their frustration at the Covid-19 control measures at the Beijing Normal University. The students were demanding to know when and how their final exams would take place, and whether they would be allowed to leave campus and return home. Beijing Education Commission Spokesman Li Yi said that universities were key areas of epidemic control and campuses needed to remain closed, but universities could be flexible and allow students to return to their hometowns. University campuses have been closed for weeks in Beijing.
Data from the Beijing Municipal Bureau Statistics showed that the city's social consumption in the first quarter of 2022 dropped 3.5% year-on-year to CNY457.62 billion. Total revenue for the catering sector fell by 1.2% year-on-year to CNY35.2 billion.
Hong Kong’s strict border controls are unlikely to be relaxed before the current government’s term expires on June 30, outgoing Chief Executive Carrie Lam has said, as imported cases now accounted for a significant share of the total caseload. But she added that the government would need to be extremely careful as there were different strains under the Omicron subvariant BA.2. “We will still have hotel quarantine, we will still require vaccinations before a passenger could board a plane to Hong Kong, and we will still impose ‘test and hold’ whether at the airport or at a hotel for PCR tests.”
This overview is based on reports by the China Daily, Shanghai Daily, Global Times and South China Morning Post.
