Beijing resumed targeted testing and containments on Monday (June 13) after identifying a cluster at a downtown bar, the Heaven Supermarket Bar, which had just reopened after restrictions were eased last week.
Barely lifted, the restrictions are returning to Beijing. In question: the appearance of 200 contaminations linked to the bar since June 9, which undermines China’s “zero Covid” policy, while much of the rest of the world chooses to learn to live with the virus. .
“We now have to do tests every day. It’s a bit of a hassle, but it’s necessary,” said a 21-year-old resident named Cao, who runs a convenience store in Beijing’s largest district, Chaoyang, where the cluster was discovered.
10,000 people in quarantine
“The virus situation has hurt our business a bit, it’s down about 20-30%.” Chaoyang gave kicking off a three-day mass screening campaign on Monday among its approximately 3.5 million inhabitants.
About 10,000 people close to bar patrons have been identified and their residential buildings have been quarantined. Catering services in Beijing resumed on June 6, after more than a month of restrictive measures for the capital’s 22 million residents.
The resurgence of Covid-19 cases is also raising fresh concerns about the outlook for the world’s second-largest economy. China is just recovering from the blow of the two-month lockdown in Shanghai, the country’s most populous city and its commercial hub, which has also disrupted global supply chains.
