Amidst a growing
surge of COVID-19 cases, China is preparing to reopen its ports of entry to
foreign travelers – including seafarers – without any quarantine period or
testing on arrival.
The new policy will take effect on January 8.
“China will adjust
the cargo-only policy at ports of entry and gradually resume entry and exit of
passengers by land and water and provide greater convenience for Chinese and
foreign crew change in China,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying
on Tuesday 27 Dec . “Those with no
issues to report in their health declaration who have been given regular
customs inspection and quarantine clearance can enter China without being
subject to quarantine.”
For more than a
year, China’s ports have operated on a “closed-loop” model, walled off from the
rest of the country by COVID-19 restrictions. That is quickly changing, along
with the rest of the nation’s approach. After a wave of public protests in
November, Beijing quietly loosened its strict quarantine and public health
policies, and all indications suggest that the disease is now rapidly sweeping
the country.
The government
officially maintains that the case rate is low, and its published COVID
fatality rate is in the single digits per day for a nation of 1.4 billion;
however, social media and independent reporting suggest that hospitals and
morgues are having difficulty keeping up with the pace.
The impact on
seaports remains to be seen, but early
indications suggest that infection rates are having an effect on all stages of
the supply chain. Some manufacturers are slowing production or returning to
the use of closed-loop, quarantined staffing policies. Top car manufacturer BYD
has had to cut production by a third, and vice president Lian Yubo told CNN
that “20% to 30% of our employees are sick at home.”
As an indication of the difficulties on the
ground, a recent CNBC poll of 340 leading American importers found that about
60 percent are having challenges getting their orders filled and delivered –
despite the fact that the congestion that plagued ocean freight this year has
effectively ended.