China has announced it will begin rolling back some of its Covid-19 measures after a string of protests

Chinese officials will reduce the scale of lockdowns to individual apartment floors and buildings, rather than locking down neighbourhoods under a new Covid-19 strategy.

It is part of Beijing’s latest ploy to soften the blow for its 1.412 billion residents, who have been abiding by Covid-zero policies since the start of the pandemic.

Chinese officials will also allow asymptomatic Covid-19 cases to quarantine at home.

The decision follows widespread protests across major Chinese cities.

Is China ready to open up?

More than half of China’s population are planning to travel abroad, according to the U.S. consultancy firm Oliver Wyman.

Analysts have found Chinese tourists will travel abroad for periods ranging from several months to over a year.

However, Chinese people feel somewhat anxious about travelling overseas. The survey, which interviewed 4,000 respondents, found the top concern among prospective travellers was the fear of contracting Covid-19.

They also remain worried about changes to domestic re-entry guidelines.

“People have become cautious,” said Imke Wouters, who is a retail and consumer goods partner at the firm.

“So even when they can travel, we don’t think they will come back right away.”

Over half (51%) of those surveyed are planning to delay their international travel plans altogether. However, tourists are still expected to travel within China and to nearby destinations like Hong Kong.

Over eight in 10 respondents (85%) believe there will be a strong recovery of domestic travel as soon as conditions allow.

What is the Covid-19 situation like in China?

In October, China’s President Xi Jinping secured a record-breaking third term as leader.

Many had hoped this would also mark the beginning of China’s post-COVID era.

China was once the world’s largest outbound tourism market.

However, the Covid-zero strategy has seen nationwide protests over the measures, which have been described as “draconian” by Human Rights Watch.

Consumer confidence also remains a challenge.

Around 83 per cent of executives who responded to the Oliver Wyman survey said there is “a long road to consumer confidence recovery”.