XI TO ATTEND VIRTUAL G20 SUMMIT ON CORONAVIRUS

President Xi Jinping will attend in Beijing on Thursday an extraordinary virtual G20 leaders' summit on coping with the novel coronavirus, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying announced on Wednesday.

HUBEI BEGINS NORMAL ROAD OPERATIONS

China is resuming normal operation of road traffic in Hubei province, the country's hardest-hit region by the novel coronavirus, to facilitate the province in returning to normal economic activity.

According to a notice issued Tuesday night by multiple departments including the Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Public Security, intra-province bus service in Hubei will be resumed starting on Wednesday, with the exception of provincial capital Wuhan.

Wuhan will start to provide inbound and outbound bus services from April 8, it said, adding people holding a green health code in the city, meaning no contact with any infected or suspected coronavirus cases, will be allowed to drive their own vehicles out of the province at the same time.

People with green health codes in other areas of the province are able to drive out of Hubei from Wednesday, it said.

It also noted Beijing will not resume intra-province bus services and urged transport authorities in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, along with public security departments, to mete out harsher punishment to operators of illegal vehicles.

Transport departments in Beijing and Hubei should work closely to help Beijing residents stranded in Hubei to return to the capital, it said.

Authorities will also step up "point-to-point" chartered bus services to help migrant workers return to their workplaces, according to the notice.

COUNTRY'S ECONOMY MAKING STRONG COMEBACK

China's economy is staging a strong comeback after cratering in the first quarter, while the global outlook is darkening due to financial turmoil. More efforts will be needed to contain the novel coronavirus pandemic and respond to its economic fallout, economists said.

The latest predictions by economists around the world pointed to a global recession in 2020, as the shutting down of business to curb the spread of the virus is causing serious economic and financial damage. Moody's said on Tuesday that the global economy is expected to suffer, with real GDP falling by 0.4 percent this year.

After a conference call held by G20 finance ministers and central bank governors on Monday, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva predicted negative global growth this year before a recovery in 2021, saying more "bold efforts" will be needed, especially on the fiscal front, to temper the impact.

Global central banks and governments are rapidly ramping up their response to economic and financial stress. The US Federal Reserve unveiled unprecedented measures before the market opened on Monday, vowing to buy unlimited amounts of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities to keep borrowing costs at rock-bottom levels, which was called "infinite quantitative easing".

Previously, the Fed had cut the policy rate to nearly zero, lowered the cash amount that banks must hold in reserve and said it would provide substantial liquidity to credit markets through various types of credit facilities that had been used only in the 2008 financial crisis.

"The Fed's unexpected moves, the most aggressive monetary easing programs in the history of central banking, showed the urgency to buoy investors, which is necessary for the market, although more time is needed to see whether buying an infinite quantity of Treasurys will lead to a sustained rebound for global markets. The credit crush will last if the global economy further retreats," said Ming Ming, a senior analyst at CITIC Securities.

The Fed's new actions failed to boost US stocks immediately. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 582.05 points, or 3.04 percent, at 18,591.93 on Monday. The S&P lost 67.52 points, or 2.93 percent.

But it caused stocks to rise in Asia, including A shares. China's CSI 300 index of the Shanghai-and Shenzhen-listed stocks added 2.69 percent at the close on Tuesday. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 2.34 percent, after a drop of 3.11 percent a day earlier. The renminbi appreciated against the US dollar as the US dollar index dropped.

"The plateauing of the number of new infections in China will allow for a normalization of economic activity over the second quarter, with factory output likely picking up more quickly than activity in the services sector," said Madhavi Bokil, a vice-president and senior researcher at Moody's Investors Service.

Chen Yulu, vice-governor of China's central bank, said on Sunday that the economy is returning to its potential growth rate, with significant improvement expected in the April-to-June period.

The government's ability to quickly and effectively lock down infected populations has allowed China to restart production more quickly and to limit the damage to longer-term growth prospects, said economists.

INDUSTRIES RESUME PRODUCTION IN CHINA

Diversified industries have resumed production to generate employment and stimulate consumption after the shutdown due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Some public buses have started transportation in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province. Employees in the manufacturing, auto and sports industries have also started work to achieve this year's poverty alleviation goal while fighting coronavirus.

HUBEI TO RESUME RAIL SERVICES IN ORDERLY FASHION

Railway services will resume in Central China's Hubei province, the hardest-hit area of the country, in an orderly manner, according to the local train operator.

A total of 17 train stations in Wuhan, capital of the province, will resume operations to handle arrival trains on March 28, China Railway Wuhan Group said, adding the stations in the city will begin outbound train service on April 8.

Train stations in other areas of the province will resume passenger train service arriving in and departing from Hubei starting Wednesday, it said.

CHINA'S PANDA BASE REOPENS TO PUBLIC

A top destination for the world's panda lovers on Wednesday reopened to the public in southwest China's Sichuan Province.

The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, located in the provincial capital Chengdu, reopened all its facilities except a panda-themed theater.

The base was closed on Jan 24, the first day of this year's Spring Festival holiday that would otherwise be a peak tourist season for the park, due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

The reopening followed the province's decision to further downgrade its COVID-19 response from level II to level III on Wednesday. China has a four-tier public health emergency response system, with level I being the highest.

Certain epidemic precautions remain in place. The base said it would cap the daily number of visitors at 5,000 and require visitors to show health certificates. Those with a fever will be denied entrance.

The base is also advocating the use of online platforms and QR codes for booking and buying tickets, a practice that it said will reduce unnecessary contacts.

WORKERS AT HOTEL KEEP AN EAGLE EYE ON GUESTS

Tian Jun, head of medical affairs at a quarantine hotel in Shanghai, has a heavy workload.

His main job is to observe all the guests' health status, but he also helps deliver food ordered online to rooms if they want an alternative to meals provided by the hotel, collects trash from the rooms and assists with a range of other duties.

Tian works at a 188-room hotel near Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport. There are more than 150 guests arriving and departing every day.

Despite his onerous burden, he said he is pleased to help guests during their enforced two-week stay.

Workers at the hotel have suggested that guests do not order food online, to avoid health risks. However, they also said they understand that some expatriates are not used to eating Chinese food three times a day.

On arrival, each guest receives a pack of supplies, including alcohol swabs, detergent, toilet paper, disinfectant, a thermometer and a box of bottled water. Only one person is allowed to a room.

Tian said they instruct each arrival on the proper use of a mercury thermometer, as guests are required to take their temperature twice a day and report the readings to doctors.

"Very often, I have to explain the whole procedure−swinging the thermometer before use, wiping it with an alcohol swab and keeping it under an armpit for three minutes. I also use gestures, as some foreign arrivals cannot understand Chinese."

Yang Huan, a coordinating director at the hotel, said special attention is paid to children and the elderly. Arrivals currently range from a 1-year-old baby from Spain to seniors in their late 70s.

Twelve children from Switzerland, traveling on their own and whose ages range from 10 to 15, arrived at the hotel on Saturday. "We finally decided to arrange for them to stay two to a room, to enable them to take better care of one another," Yang said.

Psychological counseling is provided when necessary. Yang, also deputy director of public hospital affairs at Changning District Health Commission, said a 25-year-old woman from Europe had complained that she could not do sports−a daily routine−in her hotel room.

"We understand that people may feel upset or anxious while being confined to a room for two weeks, especially when some of them are concerned about their health as they have had close contact with confirmed cases. We suggest that they open the curtains to give them a sense of more space and also to enjoy the sunshine," she said.

Lee Wonjin, an international student from South Korea quarantined at the hotel after returning to Shanghai from Pusan, said he is satisfied with the workers there.

"I argued repeatedly that I wanted to stay in a room with my classmate, who flew to Shanghai with me. They patiently explained the rules to us and didn't lose their temper at all," the 18-year-old said.

Lee added that his parents are not worried about him, as Shanghai has taken strict measures to contain the virus.

Tian, the medical affairs head, waves farewell to many guests every day after they complete their quarantine.

But he said he expects to be one of the last to go home. "Even when the hotel is no longer required for quarantine purposes, we will still have to stay here for another 14 days for medical observation," he explained.

ARRIVALS FACE INTENSIFIED SCRUTINY AT ENTRY POINTS

Nearly 10 hours after landing at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on Saturday, a woman from the city, surnamed Wang, as well as her daughter and 2-month-old grandson, finally arrived at a park in Changning district, where her home is also located.

The three arrived in Shanghai after setting out from Houston in the United States, changing planes in Los Angeles.

They underwent epidemiological investigation by customs officials at the airport. They also took nucleic acid tests for the novel coronavirus at a makeshift tent clinic at the park and waited for up to eight hours for the results.

After testing negative, they were escorted home in designated vehicles by neighborhood committee workers to start 14 days of quarantine, since the US had been listed by Shanghai authorities as one of the 24 countries severely affected by the pandemic.

"It was a long and tiring journey," said Wang, who is in her late 50s and has spent the past five months living with her daughter in Houston. "But from another perspective, this was exactly why we chose to return at this time−to reassure ourselves about our health."

On Tuesday, Beijing ordered all arrivals from overseas to be quarantined in hotels and to undergo nucleic acid tests beginning on Wednesday, as the number of imported cases continued to rise in the city. China reported 74 new confirmed cases on Monday, 31 of them in the capital.

Zhejiang province said on Monday that all arrivals from overseas, including those who entered the country in other provinces, must be quarantined in hotels and undergo the test. By midnight on Monday, Zhejiang had not reported any confirmed domestic cases for 31 days, but 23 people with the virus arrived from Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and other countries and regions.

All arrivals at entry points in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, which borders Hong Kong, have to undergo nucleic acid testing and be quarantined at home or in a hotel for 14 days. The order also applies to those arriving in Guangzhou, the provincial capital.

Wang's husband and son-in-law, who returned to Shanghai two weeks earlier, said the measures to curb the spread of the virus in the city, including quarantine at homes and hotels, were strict and serious, so they had no hesitation in following them.

The measures taken in Shanghai to curb the spread of the virus from overseas were implemented on March 6, before the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic five days later. Travelers from four countries were initially subject to epidemiological investigation by customs officials and 14 days' quarantine.

As of Friday, the number of countries subject to such measures stood at 24. Travelers from the 24 countries were taken to their homes or hotels for 14 days' quarantine if test results were negative, while those from other countries could leave unescorted if they tested negative.

Since Monday, all arrivals in the city have been subject to epidemiological investigation and nucleic acid testing.

Front-line medical workers said the intensified efforts to prevent the virus being spread from overseas mean the number of travelers undergoing epidemiological investigation and nucleic acid testing will at least double. They reminded travelers that the entire procedure from landing in Shanghai to getting to their home or a hotel may take more than 24 hours.

In Beijing, all inbound flights are being redirected to 12 airports nationwide, including Shanghai Pudong International Airport, and this may also result in longer waiting times to complete the procedure.

On Monday, nine new infections were detected among travelers arriving in Shanghai, accounting for more than 12 percent of the total in the country. A total of 427 imported cases had been reported on the Chinese mainland by midnight on Monday, according to the National Health Commission.

Many of Shanghai's 16 districts are considering allocating more quarantine hotels and building new venues for nucleic acid testing. In Pudong district, home to Shanghai Pudong International Airport, the number of such hotels has risen from 20 to 30 in the past week.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Adversity is a friendship's truest test. - Jedi Proverb