China

Beijing/Wuhan, Apr 11 (PTI) China's health authorities on Saturday asked the public to strengthen protective measures and avoid gatherings after a number of cluster infections of the coronavirus were reported in some parts of the country, sparking concerns about the re-emergence of the vicious virus.

All localities should intensify screenings and detection of Covid-19 cases, targeting key places and groups with high risks of infection, in order to minimise the risk of an epidemic rebound, Mi Feng, a spokesperson for the National Health Commission (NHC) said.

WUHAN, China (Reuters) - China reported on Saturday a rise in new coronavirus infections, mostly in travellers arriving from abroad, as doctors in the central city of Wuhan, where the virus initially emerged, warned its behaviour was still not well-understood.

Tough curbs imposed in China since January have reined in infections sharply since the height of the pandemic in February, although it has spread worldwide to infect 1.6 million people with 100,000 deaths.

BEIJING, April 10 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese spokesman on Friday said a U.S. official's "fact-distorting" comments concerning the World Health Organization (WHO) and Taiwan were politically motivated to shift the blame and will only damage the credibility, image and interests of the United States.

He urged the U.S. side to respect facts and international public opinions and focus on its own epidemic prevention and control.

WUHAN, China (Reuters) - China’s Wuhan city, where the global coronavirus pandemic began, is still testing residents regularly despite relaxing its tough two-month lockdown, with the country wary of a rebound in cases even as it sets its sights on normalising the economy.

Concerns remain over an influx of infected patients from overseas as well as China’s ability to detect asymptomatic patients, and the government in Wuhan has tried to reassure the public that it remains vigilant.

BEIJING/WUHAN, China (Reuters) - China took new measures on Wednesday to try to prevent asymptomatic “silent carriers” of the new coronavirus from causing a second wave of infections, as the country reported another modest rise in confirmed cases.

While new cases have declined from their peak since China imposed strict travel restrictions, authorities have called for continued vigilance amid fears of a fresh resurgence of infections as the economy cranks back to life and more people move around.

BEIJING, Apr 9 (NNN-XINHUA) – China and Switzerland should work together to keep the global industrial and supply chains stable, amid the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, said, in a phone call with his Swiss counterpart, Ignazio Cassis.

Wang said, through arduous efforts made by the Chinese people, China generally brought the domestic epidemic under control, but still faces the risk of the outbreak rebounding, especially the challenges posed by imported cases.

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong announced relief measures totalling HK$137.5 billion ($17.7 billion) on Wednesday as it joins global efforts to offset the impact of coronavirus, which has taken a heavy toll on the city, in particular its tourism and retail sectors.

The government said as part of those measures it was allocating HK$80 billion to help companies struggling with the impact of the disease to pay worker salaries.

BEIJING, April 7 (Xinhua) -- China will set up 46 new integrated pilot zones for cross-border e-commerce, as well as support processing trade with new steps and hold the Canton Fair online to keep foreign trade and investment stable amid the epidemic, according to the State Council's executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang Tuesday.

Figures from the General Administration of Customs showed that the retail sales of China's cross-borer e-commerce businesses reached 186.21 billion yuan (about 26.25 billion U.S. dollars) in 2019.

WUHAN, Apr 8 (NNN-XINHUA) – With long lines of cars streaming through expressway toll gates and passengers boarding trains, the megacity of Wuhan in central China started lifting outbound travel restrictions from today (Wednesday), after almost 11 weeks of lock-down to stem the spread of COVID-19.

At Fuhe toll gate in northern Wuhan, cars honked horns and rushed out, after barricades were removed at midnight.

Guo Lei, who ran a business in Wuhan, drove his car with six others, to the toll gate at around 8:40 p.m. and waited for a home-bound trip.

BEIJING (AP) — A prominent Communist party member who criticized Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak is being investigated on suspicion of a “severe violation of discipline and law,” a joint government-party watchdog said.

Ren Zhiqiang is a former head of state-run real estate conglomerate Huayuan Group and a party member who has become known for his outspokenness on sensitive topics such as press censorship.