Beijing covid cases remain elevated after doubling over weekend

China COVID-19

Covid-19 cases in China’s capital remain elevated, after almost doubling at the weekend, as opposition to the government’s hardcore containment regime explodes onto the streets.

Beijing reported 3,860 new infections for Sunday, below the 4,245 cases the day before. The caseload has swelled from just over 400 two weeks ago, to 2,576 on Friday, according to a Bloomberg News tally.

The ongoing outbreak comes as officials enact a web of restrictions to try and prevent Beijingers from moving around. Anxiety in the city -- China’s political heart -- is running high amid concern a full lockdown may be imposed, especially given the current unrest.

Residents in Beijing were filmed Friday defying officials who demanded they enter compulsory isolation, the rule for all Covid cases in China. Protests against the virus regime snowballed across the country through Saturday and Sunday, with demonstrators gathering from the streets of Shanghai and a college campus in Nanjing, to the remote northwest Xinjiang region. There were also protests in Beijing last night.

Xinjiang became the trigger for the discontent after virus restrictions were blamed for hampering rescue efforts in a deadly fire in the regional capital Urumqi on Thursday.

Record case levels across China are making it near impossible for authorities to deploy the more targeted restrictions laid out in a 20-point playbook handed down by Beijing just over a fortnight ago. Instead, they’re locking down quietly and more covertly, and continuing to mass test people to track cases. The fastest-growing outbreaks in China right now are Beijing, Chongqing and Jilin province.

Across China, from the southern technology hub of Shenzhen to Beijing in the north, local authorities have responded with a mesh of restrictions to rein in cases. In a front-page commentary in the People’s Daily newspaper on Monday, the Communist Party mouthpiece called for more effective implementation of the latest Covid policies to rapidly curb the spread of the virus.

China’s official figures report symptomatic and asymptomatic Covid patients separately, which can lead to inflated numbers when people are re-classified after developing symptoms. Bloomberg’s tally counts all local cases, regardless of symptoms, and removes the double-counting issue.

Explore Bloomberg’s Exclusive China Covid Dashboard on Terminal

Health authorities in Shenzhen on Sunday tightened restrictions on public spaces as infections continue to climb. Restaurants were ordered to limit customers to no more than 50% of the venue’s capacity, while places including cinemas, libraries and art galleries are also subject to the limit.

In Shanghai, which reported 144 new local Covid cases for Sunday, people will need a negative PCR test within the past 48 hours before entering restaurants, bars, malls, supermarkets, beauty salons and other places of business from Nov. 29.

A five-day lockdown in Zhengzhou, home to Apple Inc.’s largest iPhone manufacturing site, started on Friday. The order came after hundreds of workers at the plant known as ‘iPhone City’ clashed with security personnel as tensions boiled over following almost a month under tough restrictions.