scholarly journals Evidence of initial success for China exiting COVID-19 social distancing policy after achieving containment

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kylie E. C. Ainslie ◽  
Caroline E. Walters ◽  
Han Fu ◽  
Sangeeta Bhatia ◽  
Haowei Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
The United States ◽  
Chinese Economy ◽  
Economic Productivity ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Movement Data ◽  
Large Outbreak ◽  
The Impact

Background: The COVID-19 epidemic was declared a Global Pandemic by WHO on 11 March 2020. By 24 March 2020, over 440,000 cases and almost 20,000 deaths had been reported worldwide. In response to the fast-growing epidemic, which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan, Hubei, China imposed strict social distancing in Wuhan on 23 January 2020 followed closely by similar measures in other provinces. These interventions have impacted economic productivity in China, and the ability of the Chinese economy to resume without restarting the epidemic was not clear. Methods: Using daily reported cases from mainland China and Hong Kong SAR, we estimated transmissibility over time and compared it to daily within-city movement, as a proxy for economic activity. Results: Initially, within-city movement and transmission were very strongly correlated in the five mainland provinces most affected by the epidemic and Beijing. However, that correlation decreased rapidly after the initial sharp fall in transmissibility. In general, towards the end of the study period, the correlation was no longer apparent, despite substantial increases in within-city movement. A similar analysis for Hong Kong shows that intermediate levels of local activity were maintained while avoiding a large outbreak. At the very end of the study period, when China began to experience the re-introduction of a small number of cases from Europe and the United States, there is an apparent up-tick in transmission. Conclusions: Although these results do not preclude future substantial increases in incidence, they suggest that after very intense social distancing (which resulted in containment), China successfully exited its lockdown to some degree. Elsewhere, movement data are being used as proxies for economic activity to assess the impact of interventions. The results presented here illustrate how the eventual decorrelation between transmission and movement is likely a key feature of successful COVID-19 exit strategies.

scholarly journals Evidence of initial success for China exiting COVID-19 social distancing policy after achieving containment

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kylie E. C. Ainslie ◽  
Caroline E. Walters ◽  
Han Fu ◽  
Sangeeta Bhatia ◽  
Haowei Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
The United States ◽  
Chinese Economy ◽  
Economic Productivity ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Movement Data ◽  
Large Outbreak ◽  
The Impact

Background: The COVID-19 epidemic was declared a Global Pandemic by WHO on 11 March 2020. By 24 March 2020, over 440,000 cases and almost 20,000 deaths had been reported worldwide. In response to the fast-growing epidemic, which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan, Hubei, China imposed strict social distancing in Wuhan on 23 January 2020 followed closely by similar measures in other provinces. These interventions have impacted economic productivity in China, and the ability of the Chinese economy to resume without restarting the epidemic was not clear. Methods: Using daily reported cases from mainland China and Hong Kong SAR, we estimated transmissibility over time and compared it to daily within-city movement, as a proxy for economic activity. Results: Initially, within-city movement and transmission were very strongly correlated in the five mainland provinces most affected by the epidemic and Beijing. However, that correlation decreased rapidly after the initial sharp fall in transmissibility. In general, towards the end of the study period, the correlation was no longer apparent, despite substantial increases in within-city movement. A similar analysis for Hong Kong shows that intermediate levels of local activity were maintained while avoiding a large outbreak. At the very end of the study period, when China began to experience the re-introduction of a small number of cases from Europe and the United States, there is an apparent up-tick in transmission. Conclusions: Although these results do not preclude future substantial increases in incidence, they suggest that after very intense social distancing (which resulted in containment), China successfully exited its lockdown to some degree. Elsewhere, movement data are being used as proxies for economic activity to assess the impact of interventions. The results presented here illustrate how the eventual decorrelation between transmission and movement is likely a key feature of successful COVID-19 exit strategies.

scholarly journals Mining Google and Apple mobility data: temporal anatomy for COVID-19 social distancing

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Corentin Cot ◽  
Giacomo Cacciapaglia ◽  
Francesco Sannino
Keyword(s):  
Infection Rate ◽  
The United States ◽  
Strong Decrease ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Mobility Data ◽  
Actual Measure ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Political Decisions ◽  
Mobility Reduction

AbstractWe employ the Google and Apple mobility data to identify, quantify and classify different degrees of social distancing and characterise their imprint on the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe and in the United States. We identify the period of enacted social distancing via Google and Apple data, independently from the political decisions. Our analysis allows us to classify different shades of social distancing measures for the first wave of the pandemic. We observe a strong decrease in the infection rate occurring two to five weeks after the onset of mobility reduction. A universal time scale emerges, after which social distancing shows its impact. We further provide an actual measure of the impact of social distancing for each region, showing that the effect amounts to a reduction by 20–40% in the infection rate in Europe and 30–70% in the US.

scholarly journals Diverse local epidemics reveal the distinct effects of population density, demographics, climate, depletion of susceptibles, and intervention in the first wave of COVID-19 in the United States

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niayesh Afshordi ◽  
Benjamin Holder ◽  
Mohammad Bahrami ◽  
Daniel Lichtblau
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Population Density ◽  
The United States ◽  
Effective Response ◽  
Susceptible Population ◽  
Local Climate ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Mortality And Morbidity ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
The Impact

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has caused significant mortality and morbidity worldwide, sparing almost no community. As the disease will likely remain a threat for years to come, an understanding of the precise influences of human demographics and settlement, as well as the dynamic factors of climate, susceptible depletion, and intervention, on the spread of localized epidemics will be vital for mounting an effective response. We consider the entire set of local epidemics in the United States; a broad selection of demographic, population density, and climate factors; and local mobility data, tracking social distancing interventions, to determine the key factors driving the spread and containment of the virus. Assuming first a linear model for the rate of exponential growth (or decay) in cases/mortality, we find that population-weighted density, humidity, and median age dominate the dynamics of growth and decline, once interventions are accounted for. A focus on distinct metropolitan areas suggests that some locales benefited from the timing of a nearly simultaneous nationwide shutdown, and/or the regional climate conditions in mid-March; while others suffered significant outbreaks prior to intervention. Using a first-principles model of the infection spread, we then develop predictions for the impact of the relaxation of social distancing and local climate conditions. A few regions, where a significant fraction of the population was infected, show evidence that the epidemic has partially resolved via depletion of the susceptible population (i.e., “herd immunity”), while most regions in the United States remain overwhelmingly susceptible. These results will be important for optimal management of intervention strategies, which can be facilitated using our online dashboard.

scholarly journals The price of the lockdown: The effects of social distancing on the Indian economy and business during the COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-99
Author(s):  
Hasnan Baber ◽  
Rao Tripati
Keyword(s):  
Exchange Rate ◽  
Stock Market ◽  
Stock Prices ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
International Travel ◽  
Business Activity ◽  
Religious Activities ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
The Exchange Rate ◽  
The Impact

The decision on immediate lockdown in India put economic, social and religious activities to a grinding halt. The paper examines the impact of the lockdown and social distancing policies on economic activities in India, using a multivariate econometric model for the data collected in the period from 1st January to 31st August 2020. While the social distancing policy is captured in terms of internal movement, domestic travel and international travel restrictions, its effect on the economic activity and the business activity is captured through stock prices, purchasing managers' index and the exchange rate. Confirmed COVID-19 cases and related deaths are also used as the independent variables. The results reveal a significant negative impact of social distancing policies on the economic activity and the business activity, the stock market and the exchange rate. Furthermore, the economic stimulus provided by the Government could not bring a positive influence on the stock market.

The information ethics perception gaps between Chinese and American students

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 473-502 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Ling-hsing Chang ◽  
Jim Q. Chen
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Chinese Culture ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Information Ethics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Espoused Theory ◽  
American Students ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the impact of Chinese culture on the information ethics perception gaps between Chinese and American students. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative approach, this study utilizes Kohlberg’s Cognitive Moral Development model and an open-ended questionnaire to measure and analyze the gaps among information ethics perceptions of students from Taiwan, Mainland China, Hong Kong, and the USA, and to assess the extent to which the gaps are influenced by Chinese culture. Findings Students’ perceptions of intellectual property, information accuracy, privacy, and accessibility (PAPA) are deeply influenced by national culture. Sub-cultures have significant impact on the perceptions. Political systems, history, and legal environment may also play a role in the differences of PAPA perceptions among the three Chinese societies. The study also revealed that accuracy and intellectual property are the most deficient areas of moral developments in both Chinese and American samples. Research limitations/implications The sample sizes from Hong Kong and the USA were relatively small due to resource and time constraints. In addition, the subjects from Hong Kong and the USA were a little bit older than the subjects from Taiwan and Mainland China due to the fact that universities in HK and USA tend to have more non-traditional students than in universities in Mainland China and Taiwan. Second, the questionnaire is a limited means of studying moral reasoning because the results are likely to reflect espoused theory rather than theory-in-use. Practical implications The educational implication of this study calls for a renewed approach to educate students on the importance of information ethics for the sake of sustained economic development. Originality/value The novelty of this research lies in its interpretation of students’ PAPA perceptions and fresh insights from a Chinese guanxi perspective.

Dynamic Co-Evolutions of Peace Frames in the United States, Mainland China, and Hong Kong

2018 ◽  
pp. 145-168
Author(s):  
Ke Jiang ◽  
George A. Barnett ◽  
Laramie D. Taylor ◽  
Bo Feng
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Hong Kong ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
News Coverage ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Semantic Networks ◽  
The United States ◽  
Semantic Network Analysis ◽  
Xinhua News Agency ◽  
South China Morning

This chapter employs semantic network analysis to investigate the online database LexisNexis to study the dynamic co-evolutions of peace frames embedded in the news coverage from the Associated Press (AP--United States), Xinhua News Agency (XH--Mainland China), and South China Morning Post (SCMP—Hong Kong). From 1995 to 2014, while the war and harmony frames were relatively stable in AP and XH respectively, there was a trend toward convergence of the use of war frames between AP and XH. The convergence of semantic networks of coverage of peace in AP and XH may have left more room for SCPM to develop a unique peace frame, and the divergence of semantic networks of coverage of peace in AP and XH may lead SCPM to develop strategies of balancing the frames employed by AP and XH, thus creating a hybrid peace frame.

The Impact of US Monetary Policy and Other External Shocks on the Hong Kong Economy

2019 ◽  
pp. 239-260
Author(s):  
Hongyi Chen ◽  
Andrew Tsang
Keyword(s):  
Monetary Policy ◽  
Hong Kong ◽  
Financial Stability ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
External Shocks ◽  
Monetary Policies ◽  
Macroprudential Policies ◽  
Loan Quality ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Us Monetary Policy

This chapter uses the factor-augmented vector autoregression framework to study the impact on the Hong Kong economy of the diverging monetary policies by the Fed, the European Central Bank (ECB), and the Bank of Japan (BoJ), as well as the slowdown of the Mainland economy. The empirical results show that shocks in US monetary policy rate mainly affect interest rate-sensitive sectors in Hong Kong and that monetary easing from the ECB and the BoJ somewhat offsets the impact of tightening of the Fed. Real variables such as real GDP growth and the unemployment rate are more sensitive to the economic slowdown in Mainland China. However, Hong Kong’s financial stability, particularly with regard to loan quality, banks’ capital and liquidity, is well maintained by macroprudential policies, suggesting that Hong Kong’s financial system is resilient to external shocks.

Perceived Threat of a Linguistic Community and Context Effect on Attitude toward Immigration in Hong Kong

2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 250-273
Author(s):  
Francis L.F. Lee ◽  
Hai Liang
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Census Data ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Linguistic Community ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Negative Stereotypes ◽  
Political Conditions ◽  
Mandarin Speakers ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Abstract Typically grounded in a discussion of contact vs. threat theory, much research has examined the impact of the presence of ethnic minorities in residential contexts on people’s attitude toward immigration. Yet, there has not been much evidence regarding whether the presence of a linguistically-defined minority can create similar impact under specific political conditions. This article examines Hong Kong, where the arrival of immigrants from mainland China has aroused controversies. The presence of Mandarin speakers, under the contemporary conditions, could be perceived as representing the cultural threat posed by China onto the city. Data from representative surveys were combined with district-level census data. The analysis shows that people living in a district with higher proportions of residents using Mandarin as the usual spoken language indeed favored more restrictive immigration policies. Contextual presence of Mandarin speakers also moderated the impact of tolerance and holding of negative stereotypes on attitude toward immigration.

scholarly journals Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Racial and Ethnic Minorities

2020 ◽  
pp. 000313482097335
Author(s):  
Brad Boserup ◽  
Mark McKenney ◽  
Adel Elkbuli
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Social Vulnerability ◽  
Negative Binomial ◽  
Demographic Data ◽  
National Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
Death Rates ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Racial Ethnic

Background Health disparities are prevalent in many areas of medicine. We aimed to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on racial/ethnic groups in the United States (US) and to assess the effects of social distancing, social vulnerability metrics, and medical disparities. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted utilizing data from the COVID-19 Tracking Project and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Demographic data were obtained from the US Census Bureau, social vulnerability data were obtained from the CDC, social distancing data were obtained from Unacast, and medical disparities data from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. A comparison of proportions by Fisher’s exact test was used to evaluate differences between death rates stratified by age. Negative binomial regression analysis was used to predict COVID-19 deaths based on social distancing scores, social vulnerability metrics, and medical disparities. Results COVID-19 cumulative infection and death rates were higher among minority racial/ethnic groups than whites across many states. Older age was also associated with increased cumulative death rates across all racial/ethnic groups on a national level, and many minority racial/ethnic groups experienced significantly greater cumulative death rates than whites within age groups ≥ 35 years. All studied racial/ethnic groups experienced higher hospitalization rates than whites. Older persons (≥ 65 years) also experienced more COVID-19 deaths associated with comorbidities than younger individuals. Social distancing factors, several measures of social vulnerability, and select medical disparities were identified as being predictive of county-level COVID-19 deaths. Conclusion COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted many racial/ethnic minority communities across the country, warranting further research and intervention.

Conceptualizations of sociopolitical culture in Hong Kong and Mainland China

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-233
Author(s):  
Ray C. H. Leung
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Analytical Techniques ◽  
The United States ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Media Discourse ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Occupy Central ◽  
Cultural Linguistics

Abstract This study of media discourse focuses on how the sociopolitical culture in Hong Kong and Mainland China is conceptualized by the English-speaking press. To this end, the present research studies newspaper articles on the Hong Kong Occupy Central Movement published in Britain, the United States, and Australia. Cultural Linguistics, combined with corpus analytical techniques, is used to examine the construals of hong kong and mainland china. A 303,455-word corpus which contains 402 articles was compiled for data analysis. It is found that the disagreement between the Hong Kong civilians and the Mainland Chinese government is often reported with metonymical conceptualizations (place for inhabitants versus place for the institution). In general, the sociopolitical culture in Hong Kong and Mainland China is imbued with negative emotions, disharmony, and power differences, as is evident from the body, illness, disease, container, and possession conceptualizations. At the end of this paper, issues about researching conceptualizations in newspaper texts, such as the journalistic input, are discussed.

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