: A Handful of Cases Is Sending Most of Shanghai’s 25 Million People Into Lockdown All Over Again #WorldNEWS Shanghai will briefly lock down almost everyone in the city this weekend for mass testing

A Handful of Cases Is Sending Most of Shanghai’s 25 Million People Into Lockdown All Over Again #WorldNEWS
Shanghai will briefly lock down almost everyone in the city this weekend for mass testing as Covid-19 cases continue to emerge, causing more disruption and triggering a renewed run on groceries days after exiting a grueling two-month shutdown.
The plan emerged from one area with a handful of cases and spread in hours to 14 of the financial hub’s 16 districts. It encompasses almost all of the city’s 25 million residents as health officials use testing to root out any silent transmission of the virus, a key tool in China’s Covid Zero arsenal.
The quick escalation reflects the worry that continues to shroud Shanghai, which implemented one of the world’s strictest lockdowns in late March after a sluggish initial response to its outbreak. The latest move follows a rebound in infections within the community to six on Thursday, up from zero the day before. Residents will be released after taking the tests, but they’ll be back under lockdown if new infections are found in their compounds.
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Read More: Shanghais COVID-19 Lockdown Pushes Residents to the Brink
There were 5 additional infections found among people in quarantine on Thursday, for a total of 11 cases in the financial hub, health officials said. Nationwide, China added 73 infections.
The return to lockdowns in Shanghai underscores the difficulties of China’s attempts to eliminate the virus while the rest of the world accepts it as endemic. The disruption wrought by pandemic curbs have impacted production at companies like Sony Group Corp. and Tesla Inc. , with the electric-car maker only now normalizing operations at its factory in southern Shanghai.
The renewed restrictions aren’t yet having a significant impact on the financial markets.

RAY YOUNG/ Feature China/Future Publishing via Getty Images A policeman guards a residential area under lockdown in Shanghai, China Tuesday, June 7, 2022.
“Investors are watching but there is not much reaction at the moment given its just flare ups,” said Kevin Li, fund manager at GF Asset Management (Hong Kong) Ltd. “If it expands into more areas that affect people turning to work, then it will lead to some volatility. ”
The benchmark CSI 300 Index was up 1. 2% as of 2:20 p. m. local time, paring earlier losses. For the week, it’s up about 3. 3%.
One of the major clusters is centered on the Red Rose Salon in the Xuhui district, where services were in high demand after it reopened following the lockdown that began at the end of March. Three infections were tied to the beauty salon during the Thursday briefing, including two in employees who live in Minhang, the district that has posted the highest number of recent cases.