Authorities: All Shanghai residents should be allowed to return to city

Shanghai authorities reiterated on Friday that local neighborhood management committees should not turn away residents who are returning from other provinces.

Zhao Dandan, deputy director of the Shanghai Health Commission, said that the Shanghai COVID-19 Prevention and Control Office has instructed district-level governments to ensure that residents who have returned to the city be managed in accordance with the current epidemic prevention policies.

In addition, people must produce a negative nucleic acid test report within 48 hours before arriving in the city, report to their neighborhood committees in a timely manner after arriving, and comply with local self-health management regulations, Zhao added.

Shanghai reported 45 COVID-19 confirmed cases, 219 asymptomatic infections and one death aged 87 on Thursday.

With the city gradually easing restrictions, businesses in the catering sector have resumed operations, though dine-in services are still prohibited.

Of the 9,148 stores under 178 local catering companies, a total of 2,737, or 30 percent, have reopened, official data showed. Around 17,900 workers in the industry have also returned to work, accounting for 12 percent of the total, according to Lai Xiaoyi, an official from Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce.

Lai pointed out that catering business must implement closed-loop management of personnel. Employees are also required to take nucleic acid and antigen tests every day.