Reuters
BEIJING (Reuters) -Lunar New Year holiday trips inside China surged 74% from last year after authorities scrapped COVID-19 travel curbs, state media reported on Saturday, though the number of journeys was still only half of pre-pandemic levels. Between Jan. 20-26, a week that overlapped with six days of the holiday period, China registered 6,364 COVID-linked deaths, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention said on Saturday, compared to 12,658 a week earlier. Lunar New Year is the most important holiday of the year in China, when huge numbers of people working in prosperous coastal cities head to their hometowns and villages for family reunions.