The announcement by Chief Govt Carrie Lam got here because the southern Chinese language metropolis is struggling to comprise its worst outbreak with authorities sending blended indicators about testing and lockdowns.
Lam stated a "obligatory, common check" of the entire inhabitants remains to be important, however didn't say when which may occur.
Authorities shelved the concept after a earlier announcement precipitated panic shopping for.
The prospect of additional college closures and different disruptions has the federal government caught between requires loosening restrictions and Beijing's demand for an excessive "zero-COVID" method mandating lockdowns and mass testing.
Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous territory, on Friday lifted a ban on residents returning aboard flights from 9 international locations the place COVID-19 instances have surged, together with Britain and the US.
Hong Kong reported one other 5820 instances on Friday as the newest surge begins to taper off.
In the meantime, in Shanghai to the north, authorities are struggling to fulfill necessities for a lockdown on lots of the metropolis's 26 million residents — the most important such enterprise by China for the reason that virus was first detected within the central metropolis of Wuhan in late 2019.
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Shanghai is implementing a two-stage, eight-day lockdown, however lots of these on the jap, or Pudong, aspect of town who ought to have been free to go away their compounds on Friday have remained in isolation.
Authorities have in the meantime positioned the opposite half of town, Puxi, beneath isolation with non-essential companies and public transport delivered to a cease and roads cleared of automobiles and folks.
A complete of 14 million Puxi residents have been examined on Friday, in accordance with state media.
Residents beneath isolation complained of problem acquiring meals, home goods and medicines, whereas beds and employees at isolation centres have been reportedly inadequate for the variety of asymptomatic sufferers and others being introduced there for commentary.
China detected one other 2086 confirmed instances on Saturday, together with 260 in Shanghai, and 7789 asymptomatic instances, of which 6051 have been in Shanghai.
Complete numbers of recent instances have been close to report highs for a number of days, however no new deaths have been reported since March 20, leaving China's whole at 4638.
China has recorded a complete of 153,232 instances, in accordance with the Nationwide Well being Fee.
In comparison with Wuhan in 2020, Shanghai has benefited from China's expertise and is healthier ready, despite the fact that the outbreak is wider in scale, Chen Erzhen, commander of the third contingent of medical groups dispatched to town, was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua Every day newspaper.
That is as a result of the omicron BA.2 variant is extra infectious although much less virulent, resulting in the big variety of asymptomatic instances, which China has categorised individually from "confirmed" instances.
"There may be extra strain as a result of the bigger variety of sufferers will increase the duty of controlling the outbreak," Chen stated.
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"However at current, Shanghai's scenario is beneath management and we'll proceed to deal with and isolate as essential."