No massive Belt and Road project delays amid epidemic: official

BEIJING - Cooperation projects on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) are running generally smoothly with no massive delays amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, a commerce official said Friday.

Such projects are closely followed, and a string of measures have been taken to mitigate the epidemic's impact, Chu Shijia, an official with the Ministry of Commerce, told an online news briefing.

Strict epidemic case checks and reporting are required among staff working overseas to contain the virus' spread.

Meanwhile, emergency response mechanisms are set up in Chinese business councils in overseas markets to track and solve related problems, according to him.

In a circular issued earlier this week, the ministry urged firms to promote major BRI projects in a steady and orderly fashion and promised enhanced capital support.