Berlin It’s a 180 degree turnaround: On Monday, the Chinese National Health Authority lifted almost all entry restrictions into the People’s Republic. From January 8th, travelers no longer have to be in quarantine upon arrival in China, but are only obliged to be tested for corona within 48 hours.
The authority also announced that it will downgrade the coronavirus from risk status A to status B from January 8th – another major step in moving away from the zero-case strategy. The AIDS virus and tuberculosis are also classified in category B. From the status follows which measures are taken to combat it
The easing represents the latest radical step by the Chinese government in its departure from the zero-Covid strategy. China had the strictest entry regulations in the world for almost the entire duration of the corona pandemic. Depending on the destination, travelers from abroad had to be in quarantine for two to more than six weeks – usually in a central facility and always without an exit.
The European Chamber of Commerce welcomed the easing of entry restrictions. The step will strengthen confidence in the economy, said EU Chamber of Commerce President Jörg Wuttke.
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Executives from the headquarters of companies that have largely been unable to visit China in person over the past three years may now travel to the People’s Republic again. And vice versa, employees from China are allowed to travel overseas for networking and training purposes.
Investment confidence in China has declined significantly
Three years of the strictest corona restrictions had left deep marks on the economy. According to a recent survey by the German Chamber of Commerce Abroad (AHK) in China, the business confidence of German companies in China is at an “historic low”.
>> Read here: Business confidence in German companies in China is at a “historic low”
The investment confidence of German companies doing business in the People’s Republic has declined “significantly”. Just half of the companies are still planning to increase their investments on site in the next two years – in 2021 it was still 71 percent.
And despite the joy about the relaxed entry regulations, the mood in China is still anything but euphoric. Because the surprising and hardly prepared opening of the country has already led to around 250 million infections in the first 20 days in December. This is reported by the Financial Times and the Bloomberg news agency, which refer to non-public estimates by the National Health Agency. According to Bloomberg, in the week before December 23, there were 37 million new infections in the People’s Republic in just one day.
Older Chinese are undervaccinated
The increase in the number of cases is rapid. Hospitals are overwhelmed in many places these days. Videos are circulating on the Internet showing how people are given infusions on the street due to a lack of space in the hospitals.
As many hospitals in China are overcrowded, outpatient clinics are now opening. They mainly treat symptoms such as fever in a corona infection.
(Photo: dpa)
Due to the lack of valid official statistics, it is unclear how many people have already died from the consequences of their corona disease as a result of the extremely rapid spread of the virus and the inadequate health care. Health analysis firm Airfinity estimates that more than 5,000 people are succumbing to the disease each day in China.
Reporters on site report long queues with hearses in front of crematoria, and videos of scenes in which relatives push their deceased on beds into the facilities are circulating on social networks.
According to experts, the older part of the Chinese population in particular is insufficiently vaccinated. In addition, only the Chinese vaccine is approved in China, which is considered effective but not as effective as foreign mRNA vaccines.
>> Read here: China’s change under Xi: Disillusionment is returning to the German economy
In view of the uncertain situation, EU Chamber President Wuttke is dampening hopes that the most recent easing will boost investment sentiment among companies in the short term. “As China is currently undergoing a paradigm shift in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic, companies will likely continue to wait and see how the situation on the ground develops in the coming weeks before making any long-term decisions about their investments in China,” he believes .
From January 8th, international travelers will no longer have to be in quarantine – this means that business trips will be possible again without major restrictions for the first time.
(Photo: dpa)
Local media report serious staff shortages due to high levels of sick leave at companies in the People’s Republic. According to the Chinese business magazine “Caixin”, some companies are already having delivery problems. The magazine quotes industry representatives with estimates according to which many household appliance manufacturers are currently only working with a capacity utilization of 20 to 50 percent. Some companies sent their staff on the early New Year’s holiday, which actually doesn’t start until the end of January nationwide.
According to internal plans, the production lines at the Tesla plant in Shanghai will be idle for almost two weeks in January, according to the Reuters news agency. For Chinese New Year 2022, the tapes were stopped for three days at most.
Chinese hope for international travel
Meanwhile, the Chinese population is hoping to be able to travel abroad again soon. The Chinese state leadership and provincial governments had de facto completely prevented Chinese citizens from traveling outside of China.
Only a few people have been allowed to leave the country in the past three years. When the pandemic began in 2020, the authorities almost stopped issuing new passports, and some passports were even confiscated at the border.
On Tuesday, China’s immigration bureau promised that it would resume applications from Chinese citizens for ordinary passports for tourism purposes and overseas visits from Jan. 8.
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