After a two-month lockdown, the Chinese city of Shanghai, the country’s economic center and a global trade hub, has eased Covid restrictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At midnight local time (16:00 GMT Tuesday), restrictions were lifted, allowing most residents of the 25-million-person city to move freely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, at least 650,000 people will be confined to their homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
People infected with Covid face quarantine or hospitalization under China’s overall policy of “zero Covid.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Their close contacts may also be removed to quarantine, and the area around where they live may be closed down again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“This is a day that we have long anticipated,” Shanghai government spokeswoman Yin Xin said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Everyone has made significant sacrifices. This day has been hard won, and we must cherish and protect it, as well as welcome back the Shanghai we know and miss.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are new rules as well: residents must show a green health code on their smartphone to leave their home compounds or buildings and access most places; those who want to use public transportation or go to banks, malls, etc. must have a negative PCR test certificate valid in the last 72 hours; and restrictions on leaving Shanghai remain, with anyone travelling to another city facing a 7-14 day quarantine on their return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, this did not dampen people’s relief.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After a two-month lockdown, the Chinese city of Shanghai, the country’s economic center and a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[903],"class_list":["post-17745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-world","tag-shanghai"],"yoast_head":"\n