Beijing returns to normal after major shift in tactics

BEIJING: The Chinese capital showed signs of a return to normal Thursday after a sudden reversal of a hardline Pandemic policy that hammered the world's second-biggest economy and ignited rare protests.

On Wednesday, the National Health Commission NHC announced a nationwide loosen of its zero-COVID restrictions, reducing the scope of mandatory testing, allowing positive cases to quarantine at home, and ending large-scale lockdowns.

A major relaxation of President Xi Jinping's flagship pandemic policy, the country's top health body said the shift in tactics was meant to help the country keep pace with the changing times In the capital, where a surge in cases had forced many to stay at home and kept businesses and schools shut, traffic was back to normal on Thursday, according to an AFP journalist.

The frequency and scope of PCR testing have been reduced under the new guidelines.

The number of testing stands around Beijing has decreased, but those that remain are still busy, with many workplaces still needing negative tests.

I came in for a test because someone in my office has tested positive. I hope that I haven't caught Covid, 28-year-old Chen Min, wrapped in a down jacket, told AFP.

Some said they had come to be tested because they work in the hotel and catering industry, where testing remains obligatory.