Beijing lockdown

An order of mass testing has residents in China's capital worries they could be embarking on a Shanghai-style nightmare.

Hu Xijin, a former editor of hawkish state-owned tabloid Global Times, said on Weibo that he didn’t believe Beijing could adopt “full-range static management,” a euphemism the government uses to describe lockdown. Yesterday, Beijing said the testing will be expanded to most districts in the city of 21 million. For now, only a few residential building are in full lockdown—but the Shanghai lockdown was also preceded by similar smaller-scale lockdowns.

Workers put up fencing and police restricted who could leave a locked-down area in Beijing on Tuesday as authorities in the Chinese capital stepped up ...

No deaths have been reported from the still-nascent outbreak in Beijing. An initial announcement of testing in one Beijing district had sparked panic buying in the city of 21 million on Monday, but the situation appeared to calm on Tuesday even as testing was expanded. Those five people were being tested to determine who among them is infected. Shanghai residents, confined to their complexes or buildings, had trouble ordering food deliveries and also faced higher prices. If people keep too much supplies at home, it will cause a shortage.” Another 22 cases were found in the last 24 hours, Beijing health officials said at a late afternoon news conference, bringing the total to 92 since the outbreak was discovered five days ago. “Because if people stock up blindly, it may cause a waste of resources.

China's coronavirus outbreak worsened as rising cases in Beijing sparked jitters about an unprecedented lockdown of the capital, with policy makers racing ...

China's capital ordered millions of residents to undergo mandatory testing as the city battles a COVID outbreak.

Shanghai, a city of 26 million, is now in its fourth week of lockdown—though some parts of the city have been isolated for far longer. Shoppers are stockpiling food and other household supplies even as local officials pledge to ensure adequate supplies in order to avoid the food shortages seen during Shanghai’s lockdown. Local officials have placed several buildings on lockdown and have suspended some in-person social activities to prevent the virus spreading.

The prospect of further lockdowns in China prompted a fresh wave of economic anxiety on Monday as investors and companies whose supply chains run through ...

The time that imported containers were spending in the port had also risen sharply, from 4.6 days on March 28 to 14 days on April 23, the company said, as coronavirus testing requirements for truck drivers limited the ability to get containers in and out of the port. According to data from Project44, a logistics platform, the number of vessels that were berthing at the Shanghai port last week had dropped by about half since the lockdown began, while the number of vessels seeking to call at the nearby port of Ningbo jumped as shipping companies tried to get around restrictions. Other Chinese cities both large and small have announced their own restrictions on the movement of residents in a bid to keep the virus from spreading. Andrea Huang, a senior director at Overhaul, which monitors company supply chains, said with lockdowns not expected to ease until early or mid-May, the ripple effects for industries like auto and consumer electronics would extend into June or July. The costs will mount the longer this lasts.” But the effects would depend on where outbreaks occurred — for example whether they shut down a port — and how long lockdowns persisted, Mr. Levy added.

China's zero-Covid-19 strategy is about to unleash another wave of summer chaos on global supply chains. . Read more at straitstimes.com.

The line of cargo carriers has jumped after Shanghai, home to the world's largest container port, initiated a citywide lockdown late last month to combat Covid-19 cases. Key policymakers are coming round to the idea that a sea change in the developed world's supply lines is necessary. The westbound journey to Europe takes even longer - a near-record 118 days. At the same time, the central government has instructed that highways be kept open and unobstructed. "We expect a bigger mess than last year," said Mr Jacques Vandermeiren, the chief executive officer of the Port of Antwerp, Europe's second-busiest for container volume, in an interview. In the near term, though, supplies from China pose a more menacing cloud than the questions about household demand. "This has accelerated the pressing need for supply chains to become more regional," Mr Lorenzo Berho, CEO of Vesta, a Mexican developer of industrial buildings and distribution centres, said on a conference call last week. Continental, Europe's second-largest maker of car parts, lowered its growth forecast for global production of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles to a range of 4 per cent to 6 per cent, from 6 per cent to 9 per cent previously. Alcoa, the aluminium giant that is a bellwether for the global economy, last week blamed transport snarls for higher inventories. For some corporate executives, reeling in far-flung production networks is no longer a patriotic political slogan - it is a business necessity given all the uncertainty. In the longer term, such chaos is redrawing the contours of a global economy tied together by cross-border commerce. Shipping congestion at Chinese ports, combined with Russia's war in Ukraine, risks a one-two punch that threatens to derail the global recovery, already buffeted by inflation pressures and headwinds to growth.

BEIJING — Beijing on Tuesday (April 26) launched mass coronavirus testing for nearly all its 21 million residents, as fears grew that the Chinese capital ...

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A mass COVID-19 testing order in Beijing's biggest district prompted residents in the Chinese capital to stock up on groceries, fearing they could be ...

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Even those who can go out have few places to go, with shops and most other venues closed. While authorities say they have relaxed some curbs, most in Shanghai are still either confined to their homes or cannot leave their residential compounds. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com read more

BEIJING :Residents across Beijing joined growing lines of people waiting to be screened for COVID-19 on Tuesday after the Chinese capital overnight ramped ...

Chinese shares slumped to a two-year low. In March alone, retail sales nosedived by 18.9per cent. That was slightly higher than 19 community infections reported a day earlier.

Beijing on Tuesday launched mass coronavirus testing for nearly all its 21 million residents, as fears grew that the Chinese capital may be placed under a ...

City health official Xu Hejian said Monday that the spread of the virus in Beijing was still "within the scope of control". Beijing authorities have ordered people in 12 central districts that account for most of its population to undergo three rounds of PCR testing after the detection of dozens of cases in the city in recent days. Beijing residents told AFP they feared a repeat of the sudden lockdown in Shanghai, where people have struggled to obtain food and medical care for non-Covid conditions.

BEIJING: Residents across Beijing joined growing lines of people waiting to be screened for COVID-19 on Tuesday (Apr 26) after the Chinese capital overnight ...

Other Chinese cities that have been under lockdown began easing restrictions once such cases hit zero. In the rest of Shanghai, daily PCR tests remained mandatory. Even those who can go out have few places to go, with shops and most other venues closed. Shanghai reported 52 new COVID deaths on Tuesday, up from 51 the day before. The total case load is miniscule compared with hundreds of thousands in Shanghai. Advertisement

The caseload is low but that didn't stop residents from panic-buying essentials on Sunday and Monday with many fearing that a lockdown in Beijing is ...

KCNA cites Kim as saying North Korea will “continue to take steps to further bolster and develop its nuclear forces at the maximum speed.” Musk has said he believes Twitter should be a platform for free speech. Pitching himself as a free-speech absolutist, Musk has voiced his opinion on the moderation by the social media giant. Jack Dorsey, who had stepped from the post of CEO last year, backed the idea of Musk taking over. Musk will join Twitter staff for a question-and-answer session at a later date, the company told employees. The city also recorded 15,319 new local asymptomatic coronavirus cases, down from 16,983 a day earlier.

BEIJING/SHANGHAI :Three-quarters of Beijing's 22 million people began lining up for COVID-19 tests on Tuesday as authorities in the Chinese capital raced to ...

Other Chinese cities that have been under lockdown began easing restrictions once such cases hit zero. In the rest of Shanghai, daily PCR tests remained mandatory. Even those who can go out have few places to go, with shops and most other venues closed. Shanghai reported 52 new COVID deaths on Tuesday, up from 51 the day before. The total case load is miniscule compared with hundreds of thousands in Shanghai. Videos on social media show people leaning out of Shanghai windows to beat pots and pans in anger, or play "Do you hear the people sing?"

Beijing | Beijing started mass testing most of its 22 million people for COVID-19 on Tuesday as authorities in the Chinese capital raced to stamp out an ...

The Shanghai government did not immediately comment on signs of growing discontent. Shanghai reported 52 new COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday, up from 51 the day before. Other Chinese cities that have been under lockdown began easing restrictions once such cases hit zero. Even those who can go out have few places to go, with shops and most other venues closed. The total case load is miniscule compared with hundreds of thousands in Shanghai. Beijing

BEIJING: Three-quarters of Beijing's 22 million people began lining up for COVID-19 tests on Tuesday (Apr 26) as authorities in the Chinese capital raced to ...

Other Chinese cities that have been under lockdown began easing restrictions once such cases hit zero. In the rest of Shanghai, daily PCR tests remained mandatory. Even those who can go out have few places to go, with shops and most other venues closed. Shanghai reported 52 new COVID deaths on Tuesday, up from 51 the day before. The total case load is miniscule compared with hundreds of thousands in Shanghai. Advertisement

While Beijing's latest COVID outbreak is modest by global standards, a Shanghai-style lockdown of the Chinese capital would further cloud the country's economic ...

Chinese shares slumped to a two-year low. In March alone, retail sales nosedived by 18.9%. read more That was slightly higher than 19 community infections reported a day earlier.

Asian markets followed the US' steep Friday sell-off lower as all markets closed down except for the Philippines, which gained +0.32%, and Australia, ...

The Hang Seng Index and Hang Seng Tech Index closed -3.73% and -4.87%, respectively, on volume that was +24% higher than Friday, which is 93% of the 1-year average. Shanghai, Shenzhen, and the STAR Board fell -5.13%, -6.48%, and -6.13%, respectively, as volume jumped +19.51% from Friday, 82% of the 1-year average. There were only 23 advancing stocks and 481 declining stocks as Hong Kong short sale volume jumped +32% from Friday, which is 130% of the 1-year average. Real estate fell -3.49%, financials fell -3.49% and utilities fell -3.59% versus today’s worst-performing sector materials, which fell -6.47%. Mainland investors were net sellers of Hong Kong stocks today as Tencent was a small net sell and Meituan was a net buy. The forward 1-year and 5-year P/Es are reasonable at 18.76 and 26.43, respectively, but that requires earnings to hit the mark. In contrast, the Hang Seng Index has a P/E of 7, Shanghai has a P/E of 12, and Shenzhen has a P/E of 26. Nonetheless, the government will not want the CNY to slide too much versus the US dollar to avoid being called a currency manipulator. Large caps and value/dividends held up better than small caps and growth factors. US interest rates are rising when the S&P 500’s P/E is 22 and the Nasdaq’s is 51. Commodity prices are falling globally, leading to weakness in material, industrial, and energy stocks, though there was truly nowhere to hide. Two years ago, internet stocks were called work from home stocks, beneficiaries to covid lockdowns. Meanwhile, rising US interest rates are pressuring China’s currency as CNY declined -1.13% versus the US dollar to 6.57 CNY per USD compared to Friday’s 6.50. We shouldn’t be surprised at CNY’s weakness as Chinese 10-Year Treasury yields have reached 2.81%, on par with US yields.

Text size. China's capital Beijing reported a spike in Covid-19 cases. STR/CNS/AFP/Getty Images. Concerns that Beijing could be headed for a Shanghai-style lockdown that could further damage China's economy were growing Monday after the Chinese capital ...

The move sparked panic buying at supermarkets as residents rushed to stockpile essentials. Authorities in Beijing ordered 3.5 million residents in the biggest district of Chaoyang to undergo three rounds of mass testing this week and shut down some residential areas in a bid to contain the spread of the virus. Concerns that Beijing could be headed for a Shanghai-style lockdown that could further damage China’s economy were growing Monday after the Chinese capital reported a spike in Covid-19 cases.

The Chinese capital has expanded its Covid mass testing efforts to cover nearly its entire population as it desperately seeks to avoid a massive lockdown.

Additionally, the stringent nature of Shanghai’s lockdown has prompted anger and frustration among its residents, as they battled food shortages and stringent quarantine measures. However, the economic impact of the Shanghai lockdown—which hasn’t fully managed to stomp out the virus in the city—has raised questions about the continued viability of such an effort. China’s current outbreak has been driven by the highly infectious BA.2 Omicron variant of the virus.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slid 2.5% to a six-week low and the Chinese yuan skidded to a one-year trough.

The Treasury market steadied. Oil fell nearly 4%.State television in China reported that residents were ordered not to leave Beijing's Chaoyang district on Monday after a few dozen cases were detected over the weekend. This week will also see the release of U.S. growth data, European inflation figures and a Bank of Japan policy meeting, which will be watched for any hints of a response to a sharp fall in the yen, which has lost 10% in about two months. The middle of China's onshore currency trading band was fixed at its lowest level in eight months, seen as an official nod for the yuan's recent slide, and the yuan was sold further to a one-year low of 6.5092 per dollar . "Spiking food and gasoline prices plus the end of key stimulus programs has investors concerned about the low-income consumer's ability to spend." "Concerns around rates and recession are now the biggest risks for investors" with a particular focus on demand, said Candace Browning, head of global research at Bank of America. "It's guidance about the future which will be as important as anything and I suspect most of these firms are going to be coming out and saying it all looks rather uncertain, which I don't think is going to really help." Traders are also nervous that results this week at Apple Inc (AAPL.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) run the risk of disappointment. The risk-sensitive Australian dollar fell 1.2% and the euro dropped 0.8% to a two-year low of $1.0707 with Sunday's re-election of Emmanuel Macron as French President offering no obstacle to the dollar's rise. With war in Ukraine entering a third month and the lockdown of 25 million people in Shanghai about to tip in to its second month, investor sentiment is fragile amid worries that climbs in consumer prices will lead to rapid global rate rises. Asian stocks had their worst session in a month and a half on Monday as fears grew that Beijing was on the verge of joining Shanghai in lockdowns, while the dollar rose to a two-year high on the prospect of slower growth and higher interest rates. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slid 2.5% to a six-week low and the Chinese yuan skidded to a one-year trough.