The iPhone manufacturing center of Zhengzhou shut down one of its most populous districts to combat a virus outbreak. With creeping restrictions across China highlighting the persistent danger of disruption businesses face while the country adheres to Covid Zero.
Residents in one area of Zhengzhou have been order to stay at home.
President Xi Jinping indicated that the Covid Zero rules would not be change.
According to a government notice, nearly 1 million residents of Zhongyuan district have been ordere to stay at home beginning Monday. Except when required to endure Covid testing, and non-essential companies have been close.
The broader restrictions come after a lockdown of some neighborhoods last week. Which caught many people off guard after officials said there would be no city-wide lockdown.
The plants of iPhone manufacturer Foxconn Technology Group are not in the restricted area.
Representatives for the organization did not respond immediately to a request for information from any media organization.
The city reported six new local cases on Sunday, down from a high of 40 on October 9. Cases in China fell to 697, the drop in 2 weeks, as epidemics in Inner Mongolia & Xinjiang were containe. Beijing had 13 new cases, while Shanghai had 32.
Economy Slowdown.
Despite the high cost, China is hanging to a Covid Zero key elements of lockdowns and bulk testing to contain its largest flareup in 2 months.
The policy has slowed growth in the world’s second-largest economy and roiled global supply chains as key manufacturing hubs – from automobiles to mobiles and Christmas trees – deal with the disturbance of shutdowns and reopenings.
President Xi Jinping signaled no change in policy on Sunday, disappointing business angels who’d already hoped for some indications of easing.
Xi said the strict rules guard people’s lives during such a speech opening the twice-decade Party Congress throughout Beijing, though he neglected to mention the economic toll.
Economists polled predict 3.3% growth this year, the second-lowest rate in more than 4 decades.
Public unhappiness has also been fueled by the strict Covid restrictions.
After two banners condemning Xi & Covid Zero were put on a bridge inside the capital, censorship intensified late the week before, with phrases like “Beijing” and “bridge” prohibited on social media sites like Weibo. “We want food, not PCR testing,” one said. Lockdowns and regulations are not what we want; freedom is.
Although large-scale lockdowns have so far been avoid in China’s most significant cities. Authorities have been quietly stopping an increasing number of activities.
According to parents and posts on social media, several institutions in Shanghai have stopped holding in-person sessions as concern about the spread of the virus intensifies.
Last week, the southern sprawling city of Guangzhou closed certain schools, while the coastal city of Tianjin declared a lockdown in one zone.