China started its largest coronavirus lockdown since the COVID-19 pandemic began on Monday, conducting mass tests to control an outbreak in Shanghai, per The Associated Press.
Driving the news: Shanghai — China’s largest city with a population of 26 million — will undergo a massive two-phase lockdown as the country struggles to contain a recent COVID-19 outbreak.
Details: Shanghai’s Pudong financial district will be placed under lockdown from Monday to Friday, according to The Associated Press.
- Mass testing will begin in that area.
- Then on Friday, the massive downtown area will begin its lockdown for five days.
- Residents have been asked to stay home.
- Deliveries will be sent to specific checkpoints so that there is no face-to-face contact with others.
- Nonessential businesses and offices will be closed.
Flashback: China has been battling its biggest COVID-19 wave since the pandemic started as COVID-19 cases have risen sharply in recent weeks, as I reported for the Deseret News.
- China has pushed a “zero COVID” strategy for its population. But a recent omicron variant outbreak in the country has thrown that strategy into a tailspin.
The bigger picture: Economists don’t expect the lockdown to have a major impact on the global economy, per CNBC.
- “Travel restrictions and stay-home measures affect consumer spending and services more than factory production, since workers can often stay on-site at industrial parks,” according to CNBC.