China has reopened a key terminal in the port of Ningpo Zhou Shan

China reopened a key terminal on Wednesday in the world's third busiest cargo port and the second largest in China. Its closure to the spread of the delta variant of the new coronavirus further exacerbated the backlog of shipments and prolonged the delivery delay caused by the pandemic. The operation at Ningpo Po Zhoshan port stopped two weeks ago when one of the workers at the Meishan terminal tested positive for the new coronavirus. One-fifth of the total number of containers in the port passes through this terminal. After its closure, the ships had to head to other Chinese ports, which subsequently faced the worst congestion in seven years, the Chinese media server Caixin reported this week. The closure of an important terminal has exacerbated problems in the already very tight global transport network, with rising consumer demand in the West as a result of the pandemic increasing pressure on Chinese exporters facing strict domestic coronavirus control. In 2020, almost 1.2 billion tons of goods passed through the port of Ningpo-Zhushan. However, authorities in Ningpo on Tuesday (August 24) announced late in the evening that the restrictions would be lifted from Wednesday morning. "All units in the zone must comprehensively do a good job of preventing and controlling the epidemic, as well as resuming work and production," the announcement was made by state television CCTV. Businesses should also prioritize the loading and unloading of stuck trucks, the announcement adds. Chinese port workers are regularly tested for Covid-19 and the affected worker has been fully vaccinated. It remains unclear how he became infected with the virus. The closure of the Meishan terminal followed the closure of the Yenchien port in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen in May following an outbreak among employees. China has been battling a delta variant of the new coronavirus in recent weeks, which is much more contagious, but strict restrictions and mass testing have helped slow the growth rate of new cases.