More than half a year since Covid-19 stopped its spread in mainland China, new groups of cases have emerged in and around the capital, Beijing, in recent weeks.
The number of new cases reported does not approach the levels observed in many countries outside China, including the United States. Hebei, the hardest-hit province, has reported more than 800 new confirmed cases since Jan. 1. But here’s a review of the provinces that have reported confirmed cases of coronavirus since Dec. 1, with darker nuances representing areas with the highest number of cases:
The persistent spread of the virus, especially in the surrounding Hebei province in Beijing, has caused authorities to close several regions and urge people across the country not to travel during the upcoming Lunar New Year festival. Holidays officially fall this year in mid-February.
“Given the rapid responses of local governments, efficient testing and tracking systems and the ongoing deployment of vaccines, we believe the situation will finally be brought under control,” said Ting Lu, China’s chief economist at Nomura, in a note of January 18th. “However, the unusually cold weather and the precipitation of lunar New Year’s travel (LNY) may make the task of containing the virus more difficult.”
“The hospitality sector will shrink, while the industrial sector may remain solid,” Lu said, adding that “markets may need to lower their expectations about strong consumer demand accumulated during the next LNY holiday in mid-February “.
Hebei Province began reporting an increase in coronavirus cases earlier this year, with a daily number exceeding 90 last week. The figures do not include the numerous asymptomatic cases found by mass testing.