Potential breeding ground for new Covid-19 viral variants

China has eased up on their Covid-19 restrictions and testing requirements, causing a spike in infections that health experts fear will increase the risk of dangerous mutations in the coronavirus. — AFP

An explosion of Covid-19 cases in China as the country lifts its zero-Covid measures could create a "potential breeding ground" for new SARS-CoV-2 viral variants to emerge, health experts warn.

China announced this week (December 2022) that incoming travellers would no longer have to quarantine from Jan 8 (2023), the latest major reversal of strict restrictions that have kept the country largely closed off to the world since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.