China faces bumpy road to normal as infections surge

BEIJING (AP) — China is on a bumpy road back to normal life as schools, shopping malls and restaurants fill up again with the easing of COVID-19 restriction. The abrupt end to testing and other measures came as hospitals were swamped with feverish, wheezing COVID-19 patients. Restaurant owner Li Meng and his wife are hoping for business to rebound, but Li says fear of the country’s wave of infections is keeping diners away. The ruling Communist Party began to drop testing, quarantine and other restrictions in November as it tries to reverse a deepening economic slump. The “zero COVID” strategy kept China’s infection rate low but fueled public frustration and crushed economic growth.