Shanghai report notes virus cases as Xi says no change in ‘zero-Covid’ strategy

SHANGHAI – Shanghai Financial Center of China reported more than 27,000 coronavirus cases on Thursday, setting a record a day after President Xi Jinping said that the country must continue with a strict policy of “dynamic Covid clearance” and pandemic control measures.

Shanghai is battling China’s worst Covid-19 outbreak since the virus first emerged in Wuhan at the end of 2019, with the city’s 25 million residents largely still under lockdown, despite restrictions being Partial easing in some areas this week.

Download NBC News App for breaking news and politics

Raising hopes for a change in policy, the Chinese Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday published a guide on home isolation on its social media. .

Under China’s tough regulations, even people without symptoms must be quarantined in centralized facilities, where many have complained of dire conditions.

CDC guidance for home isolation — in a well-ventilated room with masks, disinfectants, and other equipment — has raised hopes that the quarantine rule in state facilities could is loosened.

However, when asked by a social media user in an online comment section about who might be eligible for home isolation, the CDC referenced the old rules.

The Shanghai authorities also did not offer any change in approach during Thursday’s briefing.

On Thursday, Shanghai reported a record 2,573 symptomatic cases for the previous day, up from 1,189 a day earlier, while asymptomatic cases reached 25,146, up from 25,141.

A city official said that cases continued to rise despite the shutdown partly due to backlog of test results and due to continued transmission among family members.

On Wednesday, Mr. Xi said that China must follow a strict policy of “dynamic Covid clearance” while The global pandemic is still very seriouspromises long lockdowns that persistence will eventually win.

Speaking during a visit to the southern Chinese island of Hainan, Xi indicated there would be no immediate change in the approach to pandemic control measures, adding that the country must follow suit. his approach, was all but closing China’s borders for international traveland do not relax preventive measures.

China’s zero-Covid policy is increasingly challenged by fast-spreading omicron variantsubjecting millions of people to various forms of lockdown and disrupting supply chains while other countries have imposed restrictive measures even though the virus is still spreading.

An April 7 study by Gavekal Dragonomics found that 87 of China’s 100 largest cities by gross domestic product have adopted some form of quarantine restrictions.

On Thursday, authorities in the northeastern province of Jilin infected with the coronavirus said they had quelled the local spread of Covid after fighting to reduce cases since mid-March.

But south technology center of shenzhen seems to witness a resurgence after extinguish its own outbreak last month. On Thursday, authorities reported 21 new infections, including eight with symptoms and 13 without, the highest total since March 21.

at Blogtuan.info – Source: nbcnews.com – Read the original article here