BEIJING: People in China expressed concerns about the infections spreading amongst elderly patients as they plan to return home during the annual holidays. The Lunar New Year holidays officially start on Jan 21. The new year celebrations come after authorities last month dismantled the strict regime of mass lockdowns following widespread frustration.
According to sources, India-made versions of anti-viral drugs molnupiravir and the combination of nirmatrelvir and ritonavir, known as Paxlovid — the drug found to be most effective against Covid 19, from the US drug company Pfizer — are in high demand in Covid-struck China.
So far, US, EU, Cyprus, Latvia, Greece, Sweden, Britain, France, Australia, India, Canada, Japan, Italy, and Spain have imposed travel curbs on passengers arriving from China. Meanwhile, China’s export and imports are expected to have continued to struggle over December. Imports are expected to have fallen at a slower pace at 9.8% over December, after a fall of 10.6% in November.
The WHO on Wednesday reiterated the need to share more data on its explosive COVID outbreak while praising Washington’s “radical transparency” in its battle against the sub-variants. The world health body still believes that deaths in China are being underreported.