Disney will temporarily close its resort in Shanghai from Monday in response to China’s rising numbers of Covid cases, the company announced.
The move reflected the growing restrictions on travel and entertainment across China as the government tries to stamp out the emerged of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus under its strict “zero Covid” policy. The country is facing its worst Covid-19 surge since the coronavirus first emerged in the city of Wuhan. On Saturday, it reported its first deaths from the virus in more than a year.
The Shanghai Disney Resort, which includes Shanghai Disneyland, Disneytown and Wishing Star Park, said any decision on a reopening date would be made after consulting with the local authorities. Shanghai Disneyland closed as the virus spread throughout China in early 2020 and reopened in May that year.
China recorded 2,027 confirmed coronavirus cases on Sunday, with 1,947 local transmissions, including more than 1,000 in the hard-hit northeast province of Jilin, where the two Covid deaths were reported on Saturday. Jilin banned its 24 million residents from leaving the province or traveling between cities because of the surging case numbers there.
Major commercial cities, including Shanghai and Shenzhen, have also closed schools and offices in some areas, and transport problems have strained supply chains. Last week, China’s leader, Xi Jinping, urged officials to try to limit the economic fallout even as they rushed to stifle outbreaks.
While cities in Jilin continue to enforce stringent controls in many areas, Shenzhen, which is next to Hong Kong, announced that from Monday it would start adjusting restrictions to allow as many as employees and businesses to get back to work. Couriers, taxi drivers and building laborers in many areas could use a daily testing system to return to work, the city’s government said.
In other global news:
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Germany dropped nearly all Covid rules on social distancing, indoor mask wearing and test and vaccine requirements on Sunday. But as a rise in cases has continued to break records in recent days, most states have delayed scrapping restrictions until the beginning of April.
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South Korea said that, starting on Monday, most international travelers who had received a booster shot or had been fully vaccinated within the past six months can enter without having to quarantine. Previously, all inbound passengers were subject to a seven-day isolation period. Arrivals from Ukraine, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Myanmar will still be required to quarantine.
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Two Sunday matches in the Oceania qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar— between the Cook Islands and Tahiti, and Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands —were canceled after several athletes tested positive for the coronavirus, the Oceania Football Confederation said. The “vast majority” of Vanuatu’s team tested positive, and it has since withdrawn from the tournament.
Jin Yu Young and Christopher F. Schuetze contributed reporting.
