Shanghai's weekend Covid testing blitz shows cases contained

SHANGHAI'S weekend Covid-testing blitz found the virus seemingly contained, after a spike in cases last week had fanned concern the city would be plunged back into lockdown.

The financial hub added 2 local cases on Monday (Jun 20), both outside government-mandated quarantine centres. The city reported 13 Covid cases on Sunday and 9 on Saturday, with just one case each of the 2 days outside the quarantine sites.

It was the first weekend of a mass-testing drive designed to stamp out the virus after community cases rose in the days after the city emerged from a punishing two-month lockdown.

China is increasingly relying on frequent mass testing to stick to its Covid Zero stance in the face of the hyper-infectious Omicron variant, with tens of thousands of testing booths being set up across large hubs nationwide to allow regular swabbing.

Beijing reported 3 infections as of 3 pm on Monday, all within government quarantine centres. But the officials said on Monday that one community infection found over the weekend had triggered fears of the virus slipping out of control again.

China's capital city recorded 5 cases on Sunday and one on Saturday. Beijing resumed all subway services and some bus operations yesterday as cases decline. Nationwide, 24 cases were recorded on Sunday, the fewest in more than 3 months.

The tech hub of Shenzhen reported a flareup over the weekend, prompting mass testing in a downtown district and a lockdown of some neighbourhoods in the Futian and Luohu areas from 6 pm Saturday. While cases were only in single digits, the spike came about 3 months after the city was locked down for a week to stymie the virus' spread.

Meantime, Macau reported its first cases in 8 months just days after easing visitor quarantine requirements. The gaming hub discovered 21 preliminary-positive cases in the local community as of Sunday evening, the government said in a Facebook post. There will be mass testing of residents between Sunday and Tuesday while schools and "non-essential business" will be shut until further notice. BLOOMBERG