China finally ends Shanghai lockdown after TWO MONTHS China has ended Shanghai's Covid lockdown after two months of residents being stuck indoors.To get more news about shanghai daily, you can citynewsservice.cn official website. The news was announced today with the city's 25 million residents now allowed to leave their home and drive their cars for the first time since April 1. Local authorities had earlier this month said they planned to fully restore normal life by next month but it had not been clear how they would carry that out amid an insistence on sticking to China's zero-Covid policy The news brought about an outpouring of exhaustion from residents, with one taking to the state-owned social media platform Weibo to write: 'I'm so emotional that I'm going to cry'. The easing of curbs applies only to those in low-risk areas, which are home to about 22.3 million people, according to government data. People will still be required to wear masks and are discouraged from gathering and encouraged to get vaccinated. The city-wide lockdown has fuelled public anger and rare protests, as well as pummelled supply chains and China's economy. Residents have heavily criticised the city government over its communication during much of the period. On Sunday, Shanghai announced it was removing restrictions on business reopening, but gave no indication at that time on how it would lift other lockdown measures. It was also unclear whether firms, shops and supermarkets must continue to adhere to a 'closed loop' management system in order to reopen. Companies have called such requirements problematic as they must find ways for workers to sleep on site and carry out regular disinfection. Authorities did not say whether activities such as restaurant dining would be permitted. Bettina Schoen-Behanzin, Vice President of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, said: 'Shanghai suffered a huge setback and lost its shine during the two months of stringent lockdown measures. 'Although the road to normality is long, these new measures indicate the prioritisation of Shanghai's economic recovery'. Following the announcement, Li Qiang, Shanghai's Communist Party chief and an ally of President Xi Jinping, said city authorities and residents had 'passed the test under extreme conditions and completed the arduous task'. China's 'zero Covid' policy aimed at eradicating outbreaks is at odds with other countries that have opted to live with the virus, and the lack of an exit strategy has worried investors. China's new daily cases are in the hundreds compared with tens of thousands in many Western nations. In Beijing, which is fighting its own smaller outbreak, streets were busier on Monday as more residents returned to work and public transport curbs were eased. But officials said the emergence of a new case outside of quarantined zones after three clear days showed the tall task of quelling Covid. Beijing had reported no cases in the community for three straight days - the best run since its current outbreak began in late April - until a new case surfaced on Monday. 'There was a new flare-up today, indicating Beijing's 'dynamic-zero' mission is arduous and we should constantly be on alert,' municipal government spokesperson Xu Hejian told a news conference. The Beijing districts of Fangshan and Shunyi ended work-from-home rules on Monday, while that requirement has also largely been dropped in the city's biggest district Chaoyang. Public transport has mostly resumed in all three areas.