Shanghai has set out plans for the return of more normal life from 1 June and the end of a painful COVID-19 lockdown that has lasted more than six weeks and contributed to a sharp slowdown in China's economic activity.
In the clearest timetable yet, Deputy Mayor Zong Ming said Shanghai's reopening would be carried out in stages, with movement curbs largely to remain in place until 21 May to prevent a rebound in infections, before a gradual easing.
"From 1 June, to mid- and late June, as long as risks of a rebound in infections are controlled, we will fully implement epidemic prevention and control, normalise management, and fully restore normal production and life in the city," she said on Monday.
Police officers patrol a road in Yangpu in Shanghai, China, on 14 May, 2022. Source: Getty / VCG
The severe restrictions, increasingly out of step with the rest of the world, which has been lifting COVID-19 rules even as infections spread, are also sending shock waves through global supply chains and international trade.
Beijing, which has been finding dozens of new cases almost every day since 22 April, offers a strong indication of how difficult it is to tackle the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
The capital has not enforced a city-wide lockdown but has been tightening curbs to the point road traffic levels in Beijing slid last week to levels comparable to Shanghai's, according to GPS data tracked by Chinese internet giant Baidu.
On Sunday, Beijing extended guidance to work from home in four districts. It had already banned dine-in services at restaurants and curtailed public transport, among other measures.
In Shanghai, the deputy mayor said the city would begin to reopen supermarkets, convenience stores and pharmacies from Monday, but many movement restrictions had to remain in place until at least 21 May.
Shanghai reported fewer than 1,000 new cases for 15 May, all inside areas under the strictest controls.
Beijing reported 54 new cases, up from 41.
