What’s new: Chinese logistics giant SF Express will suspend all deliveries from Hong Kong to the mainland amid a spike in Covid-19 cases on both sides of the border, the company said Friday.
SF Express didn’t give a timeframe for the suspension. Other postal and courier service providers in Hong Kong haven’t announced similar moves. SF Express didn’t respond to a Caixin request for more details.
The background: Hong Kong has been struggling with its fifth wave of Covid-19 outbreak since late December, the worst in the city. More than 634,000 people have been infected in the latest flare-up.
Concerns have mounted over the spread of infections from Hong Kong to the mainland through people and parcels. Over the past week, the neighboring province Guangdong reported 605 new infections, including 495 from Hong Kong. Cities including Shanghai and Hangzhou also reported a spike in imported cases linked to Hong Kong.
Shenzhen’s Luohu District on the border with Hong Kong last month suspended door delivery of international mail and parcels on concerns that the virus could be transmitted through packages.
The mainland is also battling the worst Covid spread since the pandemic started two years ago, forcing authorities in several cities to suspend schools or seal residential compounds. Nearly 1,100 new domestic infections were reported Friday, the first time the daily tally has hit four figures since 2020.
Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bob.simison@caixin.com)
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