Prognosis
New Virus Cases Hitting Faster Than Ever Challenge China’s Covid-Zero Strategy
- After long periods virus-free, delta has changed the equation
- Elimination helped economy in 2020 but weighs on growth now
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China has driven Covid-19 cases back to zero three times over the past five months, but outbreaks are flaring more frequently than ever before, raising questions about how long the nation can persist with a strategy that’s leaving it increasingly isolated.
The gaps between major outbreaks in China have fallen from around two months in the second half of last year to as little as 12 days since May, when the country saw its first delta cases. While China is still able to drive locally-transmitted infections back to nil, the amount of time virus-free is getting shorter, data on daily cases compiled by Bloomberg News shows.