BEIJING (BLOOMBERG) – China’s daily tally of Covid-19 cases rose to the highest level in more than seven weeks, as infections spread in some of the country’s central, north-western and southern provinces.
The country reported 450 infections for Friday (July 15), the most since May 25, with more than half the cases found in Anhui and Gansu, according to the National Health Commission.
Shanghai, the financial hub that has endured weeks-long citywide lockdown, recorded 33 cases, a drop from the previous day’s total.
The spike in daily numbers comes as data Friday showed widespread lockdowns to stem the infections strained economic activity in the second quarter.
China’s gross domestic product grew 0.4 per cent during the period, the slowest pace since the country was first hit by the coronavirus outbreak two years ago.
Lanzhou, the capital city of Gansu province, imposed a full lockdown Wednesday and ordered its more than 4 million resident to stay at home.
Wugang, a steel and iron-making city of some 300,000 inhabitants in Henan province, announced a lockdown on Tuesday after finding a single Covid case.
