About 490,000 exit, entry trips made daily in China since Jan. 8

BEIJING (Reuters) – About 490,000 entry and exit trips were made to and from China daily between Jan. 8-12 after the country reopened its borders, an official from the country’s immigration bureau told a news briefing on Friday.

This is up 48.9% from the period before China’s COVID policy easing but is only 26.2% of 2019 levels, Liu Haitao said. Of that 490,000 number, 250,000 trips were inbound, while 240,000 were outbound, he added.

China reopened its borders for the first time in three years on Sunday, cancelling restrictions such as quarantine for inbound travellers as it dismantles its zero-COVID policy.

(Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)