China's easing COVID curbs spark travel inquiry surge, and caution

Online searches for Chinese airline tickets on domestic and international routes surged on Wednesday, after Beijing said it would slash COVID-19 quarantine requirements and made changes to a state-mandated mobile app used for local travel. The unexpected moves mark a significant easing of rigid curbs that have severely curtailed travel and battered China's economy, although tough measures remain in place including a scarcity of international flights, and many social media users voiced caution. The industry ministry said on Wednesday that a Chinese mobile app that shows whether a person has travelled in a Chinese city with COVID-affected areas will no longer mark that history with an asterisk, one of the many means China has of tracking and curbing the virus's possible spread. The asterisk helped local authorities to impose curbs such as quarantines and COVID testing, and sparked widespread complaints. "It looks like a small step, but is a rather big step," a user wrote on the Twitter-like Weibo, where the announcement quickly became the top topic with more than 200m views. It came a day after Beijing eased quarantine rules and as Shanghai resumed restaurant dining following a two-month lockdown that brought China's largest city to a halt and infuriated residents. The two policies triggered a surge in travel inquiries.<br/>