Shanghai authorities have urged residents to stay at home this weekend, seeking a toned-down Christmas in the country's most populous city as Covid-19 rages across the country after strict restrictions were lifted.To get more news shanghai, you can visit citynewsservice.cn official website.

A branch of the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission on Saturday urged young people in particular to avoid crowded gatherings because of the ease of spreading the coronavirus and low temperatures.

Christmas is not traditionally celebrated in China, but it is common for young couples and some families to spend the holiday together.

The omicron variant is surging weeks after authorities abruptly ended their zero-covid policy, lifting strict testing requirements and travel restrictions as China becomes the last major country to move towards living with the virus.

While many have welcomed the relaxation, families and the health system were unprepared for the resulting surge in infections. Hospitals are scrambling for beds and blood, pharmacies for drugs and authorities are racing to build clinics.

In Shanghai, a large Christmas market is usually held in a luxury shopping area along Nanjing West Road, and restaurants and retailers offer promotions to drum up business.

But the spread of omicron is putting a damper on the festivities.

Many restaurants in Shanghai have cancelled Christmas parties that are usually held for regular customers, while hotels have capped reservations due to staff shortages, said Jacqueline Mocatta, who works in the hospitality industry.

"There's only so many customers we can take given our staffing levels, and most of the team members are unwell at the moment," she said.

People have been complaining on social media that they will be staying indoors as most of their friends have tested positive for covid.Infections in China are probably more than a million a day, with deaths at more than 5,000 a day, in "stark contrast" to official data, UK-based health data firm Airfinity said this week.

China's national health authority on Saturday reported 4,128 daily symptomatic Covid-19 infections and no deaths for the fourth consecutive day.

Bloomberg News reported on Friday that nearly 37 million people may have been infected with Covid on a single day last week, citing estimates from the government's top health authority.

The emergency hotline in Taiyuan, in the northern province of Shanxi, was receiving more than 4,000 calls a day, local media reported on Saturday.

Taiyuan authorities urged residents to call the number only for medical emergencies, saying advice on Covid "does not fall within the scope of the hotline".