China Beijing should have returned to the usual hustle and bustle after the Tet holiday, but after three working days had passed, the city was unusually deserted.

Yesterday was the third day Beijing people returned to work after the long Chinese New Year holiday due to corona pneumonia (Covid-19). However, the view of the city is now unlike what people often imagine.

"Normally, thousands of people taking the subway from the station will come by to buy something recently. But I'm lucky to see about 20 people drop by every hour," said Nancy Cao, a 25-year-old cashier. , wearing a mask and gloves at a convenience store in a mall, said.

Worried about the pneumonia impact on the growth rate the Chinese government is trying to maintain at 6%, officials have urged businesses across the country to return to work after extending the Chinese New Year holiday. an extra week. Officials in the provinces most affected by the epidemic can decide when to return to work, except for the Hubei epidemic and most of Zhejiang, Guangdong, the two major industrial provinces severely affected. next.

In Beijing, a city of 22 million people, there were 352 cases of nCoV, and streets, office buildings and shops remained quite deserted on the third day people began working again.

Sanlitun, a flashy shopping mall that bustles people around at lunch break, now like a wasteland. Apple's store is closed. Uniqlo and Starbucks only open a single store and employees must constantly disinfect door handles. H&M stores have no people, while Gucci has very few customers. The most crowded area is the table to check the body temperature for customers before going to the shopping center.

Chinese state media said 80% of manufacturing businesses in Beijing had returned to operation, and officials also confirmed that major projects would be resumed as soon as possible. However, what happens on the streets of Beijing does not show that.

Most banks are closed and office buildings are almost empty. Protection of a building in Dong Thanh District said that all 12 floors were empty, only occasionally had a few employees come to get the computer.

Only 400 people went to the Gemdale Plaza office building in Dongcheng District, a business center in Beijing on February 10, less than 10 percent of normal, the building manager said. The situation is no better in the financial district west of the city. Zhou Yahui, representative of commercial real estate company CBRE, said that only 20-25% of employees return to work.

"I work at home. When I took my dog for a walk in the afternoon, it was quite warm, I saw many small businesses in this neighborhood still closed. The fruit shop, the noodle shop that I used to borrow pumps for bikes, sandwich shops, parts stores, nail salons, all are closed except for the supermarket, "Zhou said.

Travel time is now reduced by half compared to normal days because there are no people on the road. Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City, often crowded with people in the center of Beijing, are not protected by outsiders.

Across the streets there are only cleaning staff and street washers. The odor of oil and chili featured in Beijing sewage now completely replaced by the smell of detergent.

"I disinfect both brooms and garbage carts. How can I not be worried? Everyone is worried and scared," said Xu Changfu, a sanitation worker from Inner Mongolia.

For many people trapped in the pneumonic plague, though not directly affected, it is difficult for them to return to their normal lives as before. The fact that many stores continue to close is annoying, but not to the point that everything is paralyzed.

"I of course feel very bad not knowing what to do right now. But I have no choice," said Zhang Yi, assistant director of a film project in Beijing. Zhang added that he understood the government's decision to stop the epidemic, but was also afraid of influencing his film and future film projects.

The corona virus could be a blow to the Chinese film industry, Zhang said. 70,000 cinemas in the country have closed more than 3 weeks, including the Lunar New Year holidays, the period with the biggest box office revenue.

Reports from many regions across the country show that people are still frightened around others. In Shanghai city yesterday, the Formula 1 Grand Prix 2020 race and fashion week were delayed due to pneumonia.

In Guangzhou, a city of 12 million people, many large electronics and car factories forbid employees from eating at restaurants except for the company's canteen until further notice.

The Shenzhen government does not allow high-tech industrial parks, where many migrant workers are located, to open until February 17. Nam Son Science and Technology Park was nearly absent yesterday.

"Like many others, I am very afraid of this virus," said Xu, the advertising and printing shop owner Hexing, adding that he had lost revenue for a month. "It's really scary and I see media reporting that there are many cases around here. Therefore, it's better to rest and try to stay alive and stay healthy now. This is what matters." .

However, with many people unwilling to leave home to return to work after the holiday, many Chinese officials have warned of the impact of restricting travel when the virus has not been controlled.

"We are afraid that factories will disappear along with the pneumonia epidemic. The disruption of the operation of the new blood flow pump into the economy is more frightening than this disease itself," said Hoang Ky Pham, vice president. China Economic and Financial Commission, said earlier this week.