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☆ China's luxury shoppers free to travel, but many buy locally
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Alessandro Diviggiano | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

As a result, Chinese residents have rushed to travel overseas. read moreDespite this, some experts argue that an increasing portion of China's luxury spending will remain inside the country's borders, even though consumers can now travel freely. "A portion (of luxury shoppers) will go back to the original pre-COVID overseas consumption," Yan said. "But, I think the local (luxury market) will be also important for most of the brands." Reporting by Alessandro Diviggiano in Sanya, writing by Josh Horwitz in Shanghai; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Chinese pray for health in Lunar New Year as COVID death toll rises
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Alessandro Diviggiano | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

One Beijing resident said she wished the year of the rabbit will bring "health to everyone". "I think this wave of the pandemic is gone," said the 57-year-old, who only gave her last name, Fang. Chinese health experts say the wave of infections across the country has already peaked. The death count reported by Chinese authorities excludes those who died at home, and some doctors have said they are discouraged from putting COVID on death certificates. The possibility of a big COVID rebound in China over the next two or three months is remote as 80% of people have been infected, Wu said.

☆ Chinese who lost relatives to COVID angry at failure to protect elderly
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Martin Quin Pollard | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

REUTERS/StaffBEIJING, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Former high school teacher Ailia was devastated when her 85-year-old father died after displaying COVID-like symptoms as the virus swept through their hometown in the southeastern province of Jiangxi. Her father died in late December, weeks after China dropped its COVID restrictions. Among those fatalities, 90% were 65 or older and the average age was 80.3 years, a Chinese official said on Saturday. Hong recalls visiting with her father to a crowded Wuhan crematorium to collect the ashes of her grandparents - a grim but common experience during China's COVID surge. Relatives were likewise sceptical about official death tolls, with several citing lost trust in the government during three years of "zero COVID" pandemic management.

The methods for counting COVID deaths have varied across countries in the nearly three years since the pandemic began. CAN CHINA'S COVID DATA BE TRUSTED? With one of the lowest COVID death tolls in the world, China has been routinely accused of downplaying infections and deaths for political reasons. Globally, the study estimated 18.2 million excess deaths in 2021-2022, compared with reported COVID deaths of 5.94 million. China actually cut its accumulated death toll by one on Dec. 20, bringing the total to 5,241.

"For whole of Beijing, speedy arrangement of hearses, no queue for cremation," the worker said in a plug for service on the popular short video app Douyin. The fee being charged exceeds all-in-one funeral service packages advertised in the city. China, which uses a narrow definition for classifying COVID fatalities, reported no new COVID deaths for Dec. 20, compared with five the previous day. Authorities clarified on Tuesday that only deaths caused by pneumonia and respiratory failure after contracting COVID will be classified as COVID deaths. The Beijing municipal government and National Health Commission did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the apparent rise in deaths in Beijing.

[1/2] People line up at a makeshift fever clinic set up inside a stadium, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Beijing, China December 19, 2022. "We stand ready to help any country in the world with vaccines, treatments, anything else that we can be helpful with," he said. "We want China to get COVID right," Blinken said earlier this month. “China faces a very challenging system in reopening,” Powell said, adding that its manufacturing, exporting and supply chain remain critical. Officials set up health centers and apps that told people with symptoms how to avoid infecting others, he said.

☆ China Meheco to distribute Pfizer's COVID treatment in China
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Alessandro DiviggianoHONG KONG, Dec 14 (Reuters) - China Meheco Group Co Ltd (600056.SS) said on Wednesday it signed an agreement with Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) to import and distribute the U.S. drugmaker's oral COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid in mainland China, as the country braces for a surge in COVID patients after scaling back its "zero COVID" policy. The agreement is valid between Dec. 14 and Nov. 30, 2023, China Meheco said in a filing to the Shanghai stock exchange. Pfizer last year said it could produce up to 120 million courses of Paxlovid this year. As of Nov. 30, Pfizer had shipped almost 37 million courses of Paxlovid to 52 countries around the world, it said in a statement. The U.S. government announced a deal on Tuesday to buy an additional 3.7 million Paxlovid courses for nearly $2 billion, supplementing the 20 million courses already purchased by the United States.

[1/4] People wearing masks line up outside a pharmacy to buy products as coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreaks continue in Beijing, China December 6, 2022. China may announce 10 new national easing measures as early as Wednesday, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. So, because right now in Chaoyang district cases are quite high, it is better to stock up on some medicines," he said. In the latest incident, videos posted on Twitter showed university students chanting protest slogans against COVID policies on their campus in Nanjing city. The uneven nature of the easing measures and varying interpretation of the rules from city to city has been an ongoing source of frustration for many people and businesses.

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