Beijing Drops COVID Testing Burden As Wider Easing Beckons

• Residents of China's capital were allowed into parks, supermarkets, offices and airports without a negative COVID-19 test on Tuesday, Dec. 6, the latest in a mix of easing steps nationwide after unprecedented protests against a tough zero-COVID policy.
• Authorities have been loosening some of the world's toughest COVID curbs to varying degrees and softening their tone on the threat of the virus, in what many hope could herald a more pronounced shift towards normalcy three years into the pandemic.
• As they waited for news, some people, wary the virus might now spread faster, rushed to buy COVID antigen kits and fever medicine and market regulators issued warnings against hoarding and hiking prices.
• Both of the city's airports also no longer require people to test to enter the terminal, state media reported, although there was no indication of a change to the rule for a negative test before boarding a flight.
• The loosening of the rules comes after a string of protests last month that marked the biggest show of public discontent in mainland China since President Xi Jinping took power in 2012.
• China may announce 10 new easing measures as early as Wednesday, Dec. 6, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The prospect of relaxation has sparked optimism among investors that the world's second-biggest economy would regather strength and help to boost global growth.

(Source: Reuters)