Beijing Won’t Let Hong Kong Cut Seven-Day Quarantine, Tien Says

(Bloomberg) — Hong Kong can’t reduce its one-week quarantine for incoming residents until Beijing moves past “zero-Covid” strategy, a deputy to China’s top legislature said, showing the constraints facing the financial hub to further opening up internationally.

“For us to cut it down to seven, already the mainland is unhappy and feels they cannot connect with us,” Michael Tien, a National People’s Congress deputy and city lawmaker, said in an interview. “So to go any lower than seven, forget it. If we go lower than seven, they may even ban Hong Kong people from going into Shenzhen.”