China's most extensive COVID-related lockdown in two years is underway in Shanghai, as the city of 26 million people undergoes a series of phased shutdowns to test a growing outbreak of the coronavirus.

China's financial capital and largest city has implemented a two-phase partial lockdown for the next 10 days, starting with the Pudong financial district and nearby areas from Monday to Friday. This will allow mass testing to get underway after 3,500 new cases of COVID-19 were reported Sunday...

Consumers and businesses in North America and Europe may well feel the impact on supply chains.

"The damage may also spread farther than that because Shanghai is such an important node in global supply chains," Bloomberg economist Chang Shu said. "So far the lockdown allows for continued operations at financial institutions and ports [but] anything beyond the current plan risks disruptions to financial flows and international trade."...

This was excerpted from the 28 March 2022 edition of CBC News.