China Tightens COVID-19 Measures As Cases More Than Double

China Tightens COVID-19 Measures As Cases More Than Double

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese authorities on Tuesday tightened anti-virus controls at ports, raising the risk of trade disruptions after some auto and electronics factories shut down as the government fights coronavirus outbreaks.

Stock prices in China and Hong Kong sank for a second day following the shutdown on Monday of Shenzhen, a tech and finance hub adjacent to Hong Kong in the south, and Changchun, an auto center in the northeast. Bus service to Shanghai, China’s business capital and biggest city, was suspended.

China’s case numbers are low compared with other major countries or Hong Kong. But authorities are enforcing a “zero tolerance” strategy that aims to keep the virus out of the country. It has temporarily shut down major cities to find every infected person.