Workers are flooding out of megacities like Shanghai and heading to towns and villages where elderly residents have yet to be exposed to COVID-19.
China recorded 59,938 COVID-related deaths between 8 December, 2022 and 12 January, 2023.President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday he was particularly concerned about China's COVID-19 wave spreading to rural areas with poor medical facilities but he urged perseverance in stressful times, saying "light is ahead".
"China's COVID prevention and control is still in a time of stress, but the light is ahead, persistence is victory," Mr Xi said in his LNY greetings message carried by CCTV."I am most worried about the rural areas and farmers. Medical facilities are relatively weak in rural areas, thus prevention is difficult and the task is arduous," Mr Xi said, adding that the elderly were a top priority.
Unleashed among the country's 1.4 billion people, the virus has disrupted factory output and consumption in the past two months, but some analysts say the deeper-than-expected shock may be followed by a faster-than-predicted recovery. Prolonged sluggishness could worsen the policy challenges facing Mr Xi, who must pacify a pessimistic younger generation who led the November protests against COVID-19 curbs.
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