China’s daily Covid cases soar above Shanghai lockdown highs

Mainland China reported more than 31,000 Covid infections for November 23, including cases without symptoms.

That surpassed the 29,317 high seen in mid-April, during the Shanghai lockdown, according to CNBC calculations of Wind Information data, CNBC reported on November 24.

However, daily Covid infections with symptoms remain well below the high seen in April. Nearly 90 per cent or more of total Covid cases reported in recent days have been asymptomatic, the data showed.

The southern city of Guangzhou, the national capital of Beijing and the southwestern municipality of Chongqing have been the hardest hit in the latest Covid wave.

But nearly all of China’s 31 province-level regions have reported new Covid infections, with and without symptoms, each day.

Since the weekend, six Covid-related deaths have been reported as of Wednesday, mostly in Beijing.

China’s stringent Covid controls have weighed on sentiment and business activity. National GDP barely grew during the second quarter due to the Shanghai lockdowns. As of the end of the third quarter, growth for the year was up by just 3 per cent from a year ago — well below the official target of around 5.5 per cent announced in March.

Factories located near Covid outbreaks have tried to maintain operations using what’s called closed-loop management, which typically requires staff to live on-site.

Business representatives have noted difficulties in getting workers from locked down neighborhoods to factories, while staff living at production sites for too long often become fatigued.

During the latest Covid wave, Apple supplier Foxconn’s iPhone factory in the city of Zhengzhou has drawn attention for videos of renewed worker unrest shared on social media. It was unclear how many of the factory’s roughly 200,000 staff were involved, or whether there was any impact to production.

Foxconn said Wednesday that some new hires had appealed to the company about a work allowance, while stating that contrary to speculation, new hires would only move into disinfected dormitories.

Separately, Zhengzhou said those living in the central part of the city should not leave their homes for five days beginning Friday while authorities conducted mass virus testing.

China this month trimmed quarantine times and has announced other measures to try to make Covid controls more targeted. But authorities have emphasized their zero-Covid policy, while there are concerns whether the public health system could handle a surge in infections.

Targeted Covid measures

The latest Covid controls on in-person business and apartment building lockdowns are scattered across parts of China, a country of 1.4 billion people. Fewer measures are publicly announced, while restrictions are increasingly targeted and can range from just a few days — to weeks or longer.

For example, Shanghai Disneyland said it plans to resume operations on Friday, after suspending operations due to Covid on Oct. 31.

Meanwhile, despite tighter restrictions in Beijing’s business district, Universal Beijing Resort on the city outskirts remains open, after a five-day closure that ended Oct. 31.