China on Wednesday ended its lockdown of Wuhan, the city where the coronavirus first emerged and a potent symbol in a pandemic that has killed tens of thousands of people, shaken the global economy and thrown daily life into upheaval across the planet.
Some 1.4 million infections and 80,000 deaths have been reported worldwide — figures that are rising fast and that officials say vastly understate the true extent of the pandemic. The contagion has slowed in hard-hit countries like Italy and Spain, but it continues to spread quickly elsewhere around the globe, including in the United States, which is approaching 400,000 known infections.
Wednesday’s reopening came after only three new coronavirus cases were reported in the city in the previous three weeks and a day after China reported no new deaths for the first time since January. Controls on outbound travel were officially lifted just after midnight in China. Within the city, however, tough rules on individuals and businesses are still in place to prevent the virus from regaining a foothold. Officials continue to urge everyone to stay at home as much as possible. Schools are still closed.
Older residents have started congregating again in small groups to chat or play rounds of Chinese chess. Children are a rarer sight and always appear to be under the wary watch of parents.Mountains of cardboard boxes have sprouted up outside apartment complexes as online shopping picks up. According to JD.com, an e-retailer, delivery orders in Hubei province, of which Wuhan is the capital, increased threefold in March compared with February.
It is unclear how much business they are actually doing, however. At industrial companies in Wuhan, only 60% of employees are on the job, and electricity consumption is one-fifth less than what it was this time last year, said Dang Zhen, another city official, at the same briefing. Helen Ding, 47, works at an architectural design company in the city. While her firm’s existing projects are mostly large enough that they cannot be easily canceled, her bosses are concerned about future business and future clients.
At the height of the epidemic, Liu Dongzhou thought about giving up on his company, which makes fish balls, shredded chicken, and other frozen and processed foods. Now, he hopes to restart operations next week — but expects to lay off a fifth of his 80 employees.
We'll see..how long this would last? Never know of what's comes😷 next😷😕😶
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