China's Supply Chains Must be Stabilised, Vice Premier Says

China’s supply chains must be stabilised amid COVID-19 outbreaks, with local governments helping key companies get back to work, the official Xinhua news agency quoted Vice Premier Liu He as saying.

Growing COVID-19 flare-ups are snarling China’s logistics chains, clogging highways and ports, stranding workers and shutting countless factories. The disruptions are already spilling over into global supply chains.

Data on Monday showed a significant slowdown in March economic activity, and analysts say April is likely to be worse as tough lockdowns drag on.

Authorities must ensure traffic permits for drivers are recognized across the country, and transport should not be limited on the grounds of waiting for drivers’ COVID-19 test results, Xinhua said on Monday.

“We should solve outstanding problems one by one in key regions,” Liu was quoted as saying, adding that the government will create a “white list” of key industrial firms that need help recovering from disruptions.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said it will work with 666 companies making semiconductors, automobiles, and the medical sector in locked-down Shanghai, it said in a statement late on Friday.

BEIJING (Reuters)