What’s new: Changchun, capital of Jilin province in Northeast China and a major auto manufacturing hub, announced a city-wide lockdown and three rounds of mass testing on Friday amid a worsening Covid-19 outbreak.
Authorities have asked the city’s 9 million residents to stay at home except when they need to go out to get tested, and one family member from each household will be permitted to buy food and other necessities every two days, according to a statement released by the city’s health officials.
All schools and non-essential businesses have been shut and public transportation services, including buses, taxis and the subway have been suspended, the notice said.
The background: The lockdown and mass testing come as the province of Jilin, which borders Russia and North Korea, recorded 134 new locally transmitted cases on Friday, including 63 in Changchun city and 66 in nearby Jilin — a city bearing the same name as the province.
As of 1 p.m. on Friday, the province had reported a total of 526 locally transmitted cases in the outbreak that began on March 1, officials announced.
Changchun is one of China’s largest automobile manufacturing and R&D centers, accounting for more than 10% of the nation’s output in 2020, according to figures released by the Changchun Bureau of Statistics and China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. It is home to one of China’s largest and oldest automotive groups, China FAW Group Co. Ltd., and the production plants of its joint ventures with Toyota Motor Corp. and Audi AG.
The mayor of Jilin city, Wang Lu, was removed from his position, according to a government announcement released on Saturday. The reshuffle comes as the city accounted for 396 of the province’s total confirmed cases.
On Thursday, Zhang Lifeng, party secretary of Jilin Agricultural Science and Technology University, was dismissed following an outbreak on campus.
The constant pressure of flare-ups is testing the country’s adjusted “dynamic-zero" Covid policy, prompting top health experts to consider a “China-style” strategy to coexist with the virus.
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Contact reporter Kelsey Cheng (kelseycheng@caixin.com)
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