China has relaxed some of the most strict anti-COVID controls in the world, claiming that new coronavirus varieties are less dangerous. Authorities have not yet said when they will end China’s “zero COVID” strategy. This policy continues to keep millions of people in their homes, prompting protests and calls for President Xi Jinping’s resignation.

Monday was the first day in months that commuters from Beijing and 16 other cities were permitted to board subways and buses without the need for a coronavirus test within the last 48 hours. Guangzhou, a city near Hong Kong, has reopened its markets and businesses, and lifted all restrictions on movement. However, there are still restrictions in place for those living with infection.

Last week, the government announced plans to vaccine millions of people aged 70-80. This is a condition of ending “zero COVID” restrictions which have prevented most foreign visitors from China and disrupted global trade.

This sparked hopes of a swift end to the policy of zero tolerance. Economists and health professionals warn that the time before vaccination rates will be high enough to allow hospitals to deal with a rash of infections is mid-2023 or 2024.

Morgan Stanley economists stated Monday that China is not ready to reopen quickly. “We expect to see lingering containment. If hospitalizations rise, restrictions could be tightened dynamically in lower-tier places.

These changes are in response to protests calling for an end to “zero COVID”, but they also conform to earlier Communist Party promises to reduce disruption through the elimination of quarantine and other restrictions. Although the public has been very vocal about the changes, there is no acknowledgement that they were made in response to protests in Shanghai and other major cities.

China is the only country that has not yet eliminated transmission. The United States and other countries have eased restrictions to allow them to live with the virus. This has resulted in the deaths of approximately 6.6 million people, and nearly 650 million being infected.

After at least 10 people were killed in a fire at an apartment building in Urumqi, in the northwest, protests began in China on Nov. 25. Authorities deny that any victims were prevented from fleeing or that firefighters could not respond to the call because of locked doors or anti-virus controls. The disaster was a source of public frustration.

The Communist Party, which had pledged to make “zero COVID” less disruptive and costly ahead of the protests but maintained its overall containment strategy.

The party had earlier announced changes to the strategy in order to make it more specific. Instead of locking down entire cities, authorities began to suspend access to infected buildings and neighborhoods. However, a sudden increase in the number of cases in China in October led to areas in China closing schools and putting families in cramped apartments for several weeks.

Authorities claim they are “further optimizing controls” and warn that the country must remain alert.

China is facing “new situations” and “new tasks” due to the “weakening in the pathogenicity of the Omicron variant,” Sun Chunlan, deputy premier responsible for the anti-COVID campaign said last week. She stated that China has an “effective diagnosis, treatment”, and that it has vaccinated over 90% of its population.

Shanghai, the country’s financial capital, announced today that visitors to most sites will need to have a negative coronavirus screening within the last week. Bars, schools, and hospitals will still require a test within 48 hours.

Despite these changes, Beijing and other cities are encouraging residents to stay at home or imposing other restrictions on areas with infected neighborhoods.

All passengers arriving at the Chinese capital’s three airports and train stations must show proof of a negative virus test within 48 hours. Additional restrictions apply to Guangzhou, Guangzhou, and other areas that are high-risk.

To enter public buildings in Chongqing, the large metropolis in southwest China, you must have a negative virus test in the past 72 hours. This is a hotspot in the current infection spike. It is still forbidden to eat in certain parts of Beijing.

Last week, a newspaper reported that Beijing residents with mild or asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 would be allowed to stay at home and not go to one of China’s many quarantine centers. This has not been confirmed by the government.

Forecasters predict that the economy could contract this quarter, already suffering from low demand for Chinese exports, and a crackdown by the government on debt in real estate.

The regulators have responded by allowing more money to be lent and encouraging private investment in infrastructure projects. To reverse a slump that had occurred in one of China’s largest sectors, they have relaxed financial controls on real-estate developers.

The government reported Monday that there were 30,014 new cases of coronavirus, with 25,696 people not showing symptoms. This was a decrease from the previous week’s daily peak at more than 40,000, but it is still very close to China’s record daily highs.

Xi’s government has cited “zero COVID”, as evidence of China’s superiority over the U.S. system. China has recorded 5,235 deaths since the outbreak of the pandemic. This is compared to a U.S. death count of 1.1million.

China has also seen an increase in deaths among patients with heart disease, cancer and other conditions. Hospitals focused on coronavirus cases while they treated the rest. These deaths are not reported.