Beijing expands COVID-19 tests to almost its entire population and increases fear of a confinement like the one in Shanghai

beijing launched mass coronavirus testing for nearly all of its 21 million residents on Tuesday as fears grow that the capital China end a harsh lockdown like Shanghai.

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As Shanghai battles a coronavirus outbreak that caused 52 new deaths on Tuesday, Beijing authorities ordered people in its 12 central districts to undergo three rounds of PCR tests after detecting dozens of cases in the city.

The capital’s most populous district, Chaoyang, was the first to implement mass testing of its population on Monday, leaving images of endless queues of people lining up to undergo a PCR test.

Eleven other districts, accounting for nearly all of Beijing’s remaining population, began testing their residents on Tuesday.

The mass screening decreed in Chaoyang caused panic scenes in supermarkets since Sunday, with residents filling entire carts with food while state media claimed there were supplies to spare.

Pekingese told AFP they feared a sudden lockdown like in Shanghai, where many residents have complained they couldn’t get food or medical treatment.

The municipal health official, Xu Hejian, said on Monday that the spread of the virus in Beijing was “within the margin of control”.

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Beijing authorities ordered the population of its 12 central districts to undergo three rounds of PCR tests after detecting dozens of cases in the city. (Noel Celis / AFP /)

– Economic pressure –

The capital recorded 33 new infections on Tuesday, a far cry from Shanghai’s more than 16,000 new cases.

But authorities in Beijing want to avoid an out-of-control outbreak and have urged companies to allow telecommuting, closed residential areas with cases and suspended group tourism ahead of the May 1 holiday.

In addition, the authorities asked the residents of the capital not to leave the city for this holiday unless necessary.

The measures in Beijing, however, are timid compared to actions elsewhere, Pinpoint Asset Management chief economist Zhiwei Zhang said in a commentary.

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“I am surprised that the government has not imposed restrictive policies on Beijing as severely and quickly as other cities that have experienced similar outbreaks in recent weeks,” he wrote.

Under its zero covid policy, China has deployed strict lockdowns, mass testing and tough travel restrictions to try to eliminate all infections.

But the authorities are facing more and more difficulties due to the impact of these protocols on the economy and the morale of companies, especially when these outbreaks occur in the most important cities of the country.

Concern is spreading globally that China’s COVID-19 policy will impact the global economy, especially supply chains.

The city of Baotou in the Inner Mongolia region – a major supplier of rare earths – ordered a lockdown of all its residents on Monday after the detection of two cases.

And meanwhile, in Shanghai, the main economic engine of the country, the confinement lasts forever and continues to cause inconvenience to the neighbors, who on social networks denounced the installation of large metal fences throughout the city to keep the inhabitants locked up in their houses.

Source: Elcomercio