China imposes restrictions as delta reaches nearly half the country

China imposed new travel and movement restrictions amid a delta-driven outbreak that’s grown to over 500 symptomatic cases scattered across half the country, as the government stuck to its aggressive containment playbook rather than rely on the high vaccination level of 61%.

Public transport and taxi services were curtailed in 144 of the worst-hit areas nationwide, while officials curbed train service and subway usage in Beijing, where three new cases were reported Wednesday. Hong Kong re-imposed quarantine on travelers from the mainland, though an exception remained for the southern Guangdong province which neighbors the financial city. Officials reported on Thursday 94 new local infections detected Wednesday, including 32 asymptomatic infections, adding to the country’s broadest Covid-19 threat since the pathogen first emerged in Wuhan in late 2019.