China is struggling more and more to contain outbreaks of COVID-19 infections than at any point time since the first cases were reported in Wuhan in 2019, Bloomberg reported.
Hundreds of cases of locally transmitted infections were detected in more than two-thirds of Chinese provinces.
The government has started imposing restrictions on its residents already, and has also issued certain warnings about what the future might look like.
Earlier this week, the Ministry of Commerce urged residents in a notice to stock up on essential items for the approaching winter, stating that families should "store a certain amount of daily necessities as needed to meet daily life and emergencies".
Health experts say that the chances of China reopening its economy are quite low.
"My personal estimate is China won't reopen for another year," according to Chen Zhengming of Oxford University.
Jason Wang of Stanford University believes that opening up risks a surge in cases that could overwhelm hospitals, leading to social unrest.
Experts who have studied China's political system say that the Communist Party is proud of how it has handled the pandemic, and uses its handling to further the legitimacy of the party and the Chinese system of governance.
"China's strong COVID response has been among the best arguments in favour of its system of government, convincing the Chinese themselves and many non-Chinese around the world," according to Frank Tsai, a lecturer at Emlyon Business School in Shanghai.
Economists say that China's hardline approach has both pros and cons.
Shuang Ding, the chief economist for Greater China and North Asia at Standard Chartered Bank argued that while shutting down the country will of course slow down the economy, the silver lining is that the economy won't crumble like it could in the case of a COVID rampage, NDTV reported.
(With inputs from Bloomberg and NDTV)
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