Hong Kong to order first lockdown in parts of Kowloon

HONG KONG (Bloomberg) — Hong Kong for the first time will lock down tens of thousands of residents in a bid to contain a worsening outbreak of the coronavirus, the South China Morning Post reported, citing unidentified people. The lockdown is expected to begin this weekend in Yau Tsim Mong, the core urban district of Kowloon, SCMP said. It covers the two designated mandatory testing areas in Jordan and Sham Shui Po, where aging buildings and subdivided flats populated by lower-income families are common. The benchmark Hang Seng Index dropped as much as 1.3% after the report. Only residents who show negative COVID-19 test results will be allowed to leave the lockdown areas, according to the SCMP report, specifying that exemptions will be allowed for those who need to seek medical consultation or face physical harm. The reported lockdown pales in comparison with the measures taken by mainland China, which has adopted a hardline approach that bans people from leaving cities, districts or even their apartment complexes. But it’s the most severe step Hong Kong has taken to control the pathogen, and a blow to the government’s approach of trying to keep the economy largely running during the pandemic.