North China's Shanxi Province has suspended mail and courier services province-wide on Wednesday, a move that came after seven logistics workers in the capital Taiyuan tested positive for COVID-19.

According to a report circulating on the internet, the Shanxi Provincial Postal Administration on Wednesday asked postal and courier companies in the province to immediately suspend operations until further notice and requested employees to stay put.

Yunda Express' employees were asked to not move around and report to the disease control department and the neighborhood authorities, according to the document.

This report was confirmed by some courier services employees as well as by online sellers located in Shanxi reached by the Global Times.

The manager of a Taiyuan-based courier company told the Global Times on Wednesday evening that it had received the instructions to suspend operations.

"At the moment, my business was asked not to ship and deliver packages," he said, adding that "as far as I know, other courier companies were also asked to halt courier services."

A customer service agent at the Yunda Express head office told the Global Times that the company's outlets in Shanxi have all suspended services.

The official website of another courier company, SF Express, also shows that the outlets located in cities and counties in Shanxi are currently unable to provide services.

A number of retailers from Shanxi on e-commerce sites also confirmed that they cannot send packages.

A businessperson that sells Shanxi red Fuji apples also shared the notice with the Global Times, saying they received the announcement from the logistics company on Wednesday.

On Wednesday afternoon, Taiyuan city officials said at a news conference that seven people tested positive for COVID-19 in Qinghu county during voluntary testing. All are staff of the Yunda Express logistics park.

The city's health authorities asked residents who received packages via Yunda Express since April 1 to disinfect the parcel and report to the neighborhood authorities.