Huaqiangbei market in Shenzhen, which houses thousands of shops selling key components like microchips and telephone parts to manufacturers, will be shuttered until Sept 2

The gross payout was the most since data began in 2013 and a 257% increase from a year earlier, according Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security data.

Production hubs in China have seen output hit by Covid-related lockdowns in Shanghai. There is also deep concern about the impact of growing tensions between the US and China.

The proportion of people in the region facing extreme poverty – living on less than $1.90 a day – could have eased to 2.9% in 2020 instead of rising to 5% because of the pandemic, it said.

Prime Minister Kishida Fumio said that from Sept 7 visitors to Japan will no longer need to undergo pre-departure Covid tests

Vice Commerce Minister Sheng Qiuping says SMES face greater pressure to survive amid Covid restrictions on mobility and risks of declining external demand.

China is shooting rods of silver iodide into the clouds in an attempt to induce rainfall in its Yangtze River basin area following the worst heatwave since 1961.

Chinese companies that assemble products for US tech giant Apple are considering making the Apple Watch and MacBook in Vietnam for the first time

Footage posted on social media shows chaotic scenes in Shanghai when staff tried to lock customers in a building and Ikea store amid concern about people having Covid-19

China's financial hub Shanghai is set to reopen all schools, kindergartens and nurseries on September 1, officials said on Sunday

Many private companies in Dongguan have been forced to shut down, lay off staff, or suspend production because zero-Covid restrictions had a severe impact on their operations

Less harsh lockdowns seem to be the preferred strategy in many areas - that reducing 'unnecessary' movement for a few days is the best way to halt an outbreak and not kill the economy