Volkswagen Photo: CFP

 
German carmaker Volkswagen has restarted production at multiple sites in China that had closed temporarily as a result of COVID-19 management measures. It’s the latest example of overseas manufacturing giants moving toward normal operation as the country shifts toward controlling COVID-19 in a more precise, scientific way instead of large-scale lockdowns. 

According to information sent by Volkswagen to the Global Times, the company's plant in Chengdu, Southwest China’s Sichuan and two production lines in Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin Province have all resumed production.

"The production network of Volkswagen Group and its joint venture in China is currently operating stably," the company said. 
 
The company had previously suspended its operation in Chengdu and stopped two of its five production lines in Changchun, according to media reports. 

The plant in Chongqing run by Chang'an Ford, a 50/50 joint venture between Chang'an Automobile and US-based Ford, is also pushing for resumption of work and production, thecover.cn reported, saying that the plant has maintained closed-loop production since early November.  

Multiple carmakers in China shuttered plants when a relatively strong wave of coronavirus outbreaks swept across China recently. For example, Japanese manufacturer Honda Motor Co halted its operation in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei Province around the end of November, nikkei.com reported.

Multiple Chinese cities have moved away from large-scale lockdowns and rigid nucleic acid testing in recent days to make sure that epidemic prevention measures are scientific and don't exert too much negative impact on the domestic economy.

Beijing recently announced that it is no longer requiring a negative COVID-19 test for people to enter supermarkets and commercial buildings. Chengdu also scrapped requirements for its citizens to show nucleic acid test results before taking subway trains.