Coronavirus Update: Shanghai authorities allow some financial firms to resume work

Shanghai city’s authorities issued a new white list containing 864 financial institutions allowed to resume work, Reuters reports, citing three sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday.

The report is not yet confirmed by the Shanghai government, although the move could be a part of the financial center’s plan to reopen broadly after a nearly two-month-long lockdown.

Meanwhile, the city reported a minor rise in cases to 855 on Tuesday from 823 on Monday, no infections were found outside of government quarantine for the fourth day. 

On the other hand, Beijing reported 69 new cases for Tuesday, up from 52 on Monday. “Tianjin, close to the capital and where an outbreak in January disrupted global automakers Toyota Motor Corp. and Volkswagen AG, saw cases rise to 55 on Tuesday from 28 on Monday,” Bloomberg reported.

Nationwide, the case count rose for the first time in five days.

Market reaction

AUD/USD is under heavy selling pressure amid souring risk sentiment, currently battling 0.7000, down 0.41% on the day.

The S&P 500 futures snapped its uptrend to now drop 0.27% on the day.