March 29, 2022
China began its most sweeping coronavirus restrictions since the early pandemic yesterday, locking down large swaths of Shanghai in an effort to contain an emerging outbreak. The country’s largest city, home to 26 million residents, reported roughly 3,500 new cases Sunday—though all but 50 were asymptomatic.
The jump in cases has been fueled by the BA.2 omicron variant, which has increased the total number of cases reported in China during the entire pandemic by 50% in the past three months. The highly transmissible strain has presented a challenge to the government’s stated “Zero COVID” policy, with citywide lockdowns leading to significant economic disruption.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 deaths in the US continue to fall, with the seven-day rolling average near 750 per day (see data), while reporting around 31,000 new infections each day. Ed. Note: This will undoubtedly further disrupt vessel schedules. Please allow extra time in your supply chains to accommodate this.