SCMP Originals
Coronavirus China

First travellers arrive and depart from Beijing as China reopens international borders

The first international passenger flights to and from Beijing took place on January 8, 2023, as China reopened its borders following a central government decision to drop the nation’s zero-Covid policy and the tight restrictions imposed with it.

January 8, 2023
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Germans living in China began receiving the BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine on January 5, 2023, the first use of a foreign coronavirus jab in the country. The vaccine programme is part of an agreement...01:56
Coronavirus China
German nationals in China first to receive foreign Covid-19 vaccine
January 6, 2023
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Chinese pharmaceutical companies are trying to keep up with the surge in demand for fever-reducing medicine, as the country grapples with a spike in Covid-19 cases after Beijing ended its strict...01:33
Coronavirus China
Chinese drug makers ramp up production of paracetamol, ibuprofen
January 5, 2023
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Up to 60,000 travellers will be allowed to cross the border each way and daily between Hong Kong and mainland China starting January 8, 2023. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced on January 5...02:11
Coronavirus China
Hong Kong announces details of mainland China border reopening
January 5, 2023
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The World Health Organization (WHO) says that China is “under-representing” the severity of its current Covid-19 outbreak. The statement on January 4, 2023, was issued after a meeting a day earlier...02:17
Coronavirus China
WHO says China data ‘under-represents’ country’s Covid death toll
January 5, 2023
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Chinese President Xi Jinping assured the nation that the “light of hope is right in front” of China as it battles Covid-19 and called for unity and perseverance in this “new stage” of pandemic...02:22
Coronavirus China
China can see a ‘light of hope’ in Covid battle: Xi Jinping
January 1, 2023
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South Korea said on December 30, 2022, that it will require travellers from China to undergo mandatory Covid-19 testing on arrival, joining the United States, Japan and other countries in adopting...01:45
South Korea
South Korea to require Covid-19 tests for travellers from China
December 30, 2022
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US health officials announced on December 28, 2022, that visitors from China, including Hong Kong and Macau, will be required to produce a negative Covid-19 test result to enter the country from...02:18
United States
US mandates Covid tests for China travellers
December 29, 2022
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Experts say China has a definite edge in spearheading global climate action, but will face hurdles regarding a bigger role in the World Health Organization (WHO)06:23
China
Can China lead global health and climate change action?
January 23, 2025
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Read more on this: https://sc.mp/42v6 ...01:50
Health in China
WHO questions China amid respiratory illness outbreak
November 24, 2023
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China’s tourism industry has bounced back after three years of zero-Covid, but the economic recovery comes too late for some business owners. Domestic tourism, which suffered during the pandemic,...04:43
Coronavirus China
China’s slow journey to economic recovery
February 4, 2023
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Over 100 Chinese travellers arrived in the Philippines on January 24, 2023, aboard the first direct flight from mainland China since Beijing reopened borders and scrapped most of its Covid-19 curbs...02:18
China-Philippines relations
Chinese tourists return to the Philippines after nearly 3 years
January 25, 2023
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The central Chinese city of Wuhan became the world’s first Covid-19 epicentre after the first cases in the pandemic were reported there in November 2019. It was also the first city in the world to...05:12
Coronavirus China
Pandemic fading into history for world’s first Covid-19 epicentre
January 24, 2023
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Travellers packed Beijing West Railway Station on January 20, 2023, in what is expected to be one of the busiest travel seasons in years. Hundreds of millions of people are travelling back to their...02:18
China economy
Peak travel season returns to China
January 20, 2023
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Spirits have been dampened in China ahead of the Lunar New Year which begins on January 22, 2023. For some residents, what was supposed to be a time for celebration to welcome the Year of the...01:54
Coronavirus China
‘No holiday mood’ in China amid Covid-19 wave
January 18, 2023
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China’s economy grew by 3 per cent in 2022, the National Statistics Bureau announced on January 17, 2023. The figure for GDP growth was the second-lowest recorded since 1976, and it comes as China...02:24
China GDP
China reports second-lowest economic growth since 1976
January 17, 2023
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Rural areas in China have been hit hard by a surge in Covid-19 cases after the central government abruptly dropped most pandemic restrictions in early December 2022. One village doctor in northern...04:34
Coronavirus China
Rural China hit by Covid surge
January 16, 2023
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China recorded almost 60,000 Covid-related deaths between December 8, 2022 and January 12, 2023, according to the country’s National Health Commission. The number released on January 14, 2023, was...02:10
Coronavirus China
Nearly 60,000 Covid-related deaths since policy shift, says China
January 16, 2023
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Valerie Baudson, CEO of Paris-headquartered Amundi, said China’s reopening is very good news for the economy in the region and worldwide. China’s reopening will spark economic growth to reach 4.5...04:49
China economy
China reopening good news for Asian economic growth
January 16, 2023
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China is struggling to contain the fallout from suddenly ending its draconian Covid-control regime. How bad is the situation and what’s next for the world’s second-largest economy?  ...29:55
Talking Post with Yonden Lhatoo
Unpacking China’s new Covid crisis
January 14, 2023
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Shopkeepers in the Japanese capital Tokyo are eagerly awaiting the return of Chinese tourists after China reopened its borders for international travel on January 8, 2023. But amid the ongoing...02:50
Japan
Japan cautiously awaits return of Chinese tourists
January 11, 2023
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After China eased its zero-Covid policy and reopened its borders on January 8, 2023, tourism-dependent businesses in South Korea have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of mainland Chinese tourists....03:01
South Korea
South Korean street vendors eagerly await Chinese tourists amid tit-for-tat Covid travel measures
January 10, 2023