Shanghai&nbsp;on Thursday said it was trying its best to&nbsp;improve&nbsp;the distribution of&nbsp;food&nbsp;and essential goods to locked-in residents, responding to growing&nbsp;discontent&nbsp;over&nbsp;such difficulties as covid&nbsp;curbs&nbsp;stretched into an 11th day.

China's financial hub has fallen largely silent after the city imposed harsh movement restrictions to stem the spread of&nbsp;Covid, with only healthcare workers, volunteers, delivery personnel or people with special permission allowed on the streets.

Authorities say that has whittled the number of couriers, who must keep the city's 26 million residents supplied, to just 11,000. Among still operating, but&nbsp;overloaded services, include Meituan as well as Alibaba's Freshippo online grocery platform and its Ele.me service.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/covid-might-have-longer-impacts-on-your-brain-study-468522">Covid might have longer impacts on your brain: Study</a>

Lockdowns for the city's residents eastern of the Huangpu river began on March 28, while lockdowns for the rest of the city started on April 1. The exercise originally was intended to last five days at most.

The&nbsp;Shanghai&nbsp;branch of China's Communist Party called on members to "dare show their swords and fight against all kind of behaviour that interferes with and destroys the&nbsp;overall efforts against the pandemic" in an open letter on Wednesday night.

Shanghai&nbsp;has sufficient reserves of staples such as rice and meat, but issues have cropped up in distribution and last-mile&nbsp;deliveries&nbsp;because of epidemic control measures,&nbsp;Shanghai's vice mayor Chen Tong said at a news conference on Thursday.

He said the city would try to reopen some wholesale markets and&nbsp;food&nbsp;stores and allow more delivery personnel out of locked-down areas. Officials will also crack down on price gouging, he added.

"In response to the various problems reported by the public, we have been holding meetings&nbsp;overnight to try and figure out solutions," he said.

Many residents are beginning to worry about&nbsp;food&nbsp;and drinking water, as well as obtaining products such as infant formula.

Watch |&nbsp;China reports highest ever-daily cases, 'Shanghai insufficiently prepared,' says top official

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/china-reports-highest-ever-daily-cases-shanghai-insufficiently-prepared-says-top-official-468761/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo">
Some have complained on social media waking up at dawn for a chance at booking a grocery delivery, but finding them sold out within seconds. Others have turned to community WeChat groups to try to bulk-buy fruit and vegetables.

Social media users have also widely shared outrage&nbsp;over&nbsp;individual tragedies, including the alleged suicide of woman after being cyberbullied for paying too little to a delivery worker, and a healthcare worker beating to death a corgi after its owner allegedly was taken to quarantine.
</div>

Reuters could not independently verify either story.

Shanghai, which has been conducting multiple rounds of testing, reported close to 20,000 new locally transmitted cases for Wednesday, 98% of which it said where asymptomatic.

However, there are signs that transmission is still happening in spite of the lockdowns. Of its 19,660 asymptomatic infections, 633 involved people who were not under quarantine or who faced control measures, the data showed.

Shanghai&nbsp;denied rumours on Wednesday that it planned to suspend all delivery services amid concerns that the virus was being spread through such workers. It requires them to take PCR and antigen tests every day, and they can only deliver goods if they test negative.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/shanghai-eases-child-separation-under-covid-policy-but-extends-lockdown-468926">Shanghai eases child separation under COVID policy but extends lockdown</a>

China's most-populous city has yet to give an indication of when lockdown measures will lift, fuelling uncertainty and prompting European businesses and economists to warn about the mounting toll they are having on its economy and attractiveness as an international financial hub.

Although&nbsp;Shanghai's case numbers remain small by global standards, the city has emerged as a test bed for China's "dynamic clearance" anti-Covid strategy, which seeks to test, trace and centrally quarantine all positive cases and their close contacts.

On Thursday,&nbsp;Shanghai&nbsp;city officials said they would continue to conduct more testing among its residents who will be asked to take PCR or self-administered antigen tests.

Shanghai&nbsp;has converted dozens of buildings into quarantine facilities that can house tens of thousands of positive cases.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/shanghais-covid-mission-impossible-38k-health-workers-deployed-sampling-of-25-million-residents-completed-468430">Shanghai's COVID 'mission impossible': 38k health workers deployed, sampling of 25 million residents completed</a>

On Tuesday construction began on a new facility that can house 40,000 beds will be finished by Friday, local media The Paper said on Thursday.

Late on Wednesday, the China News Service said the neighbouring provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang will also provide 60,000 more rooms which patients from&nbsp;Shanghai&nbsp;can quarantine.

Shanghai on Thursday said it was trying its best to improve the distribution of food and essential goods to locked-in residents, responding to growing discontent over such difficulties as covid curbs stretched into an 11th day.

Shanghai on Thursday said it was trying its best to improve the distribution of food and essential goods to locked-in residents, responding to growing discontent over such difficulties as covid curbs stretched into an 11th day. China's financial hub has fallen largely silent after the city imposed harsh movement restrictions to stem the spread of Covid, with only healthcare workers, volunteers, delivery personnel or people with special permission allowed on the streets. Authorities say that has whittled the number of couriers, who must keep the city's 26 million residents supplied, to just 11,000. Among still operating, but overloaded services, include Meituan as well as Alibaba's Freshippo online grocery platform and its Ele.me service. Also read | Covid might have longer impacts on your brain: Study Lockdowns for the city's residents eastern of the Huangpu river began on March 28, while lockdowns for the rest of the city started on April 1. The exercise originally was intended to last five days at most. The Shanghai branch of China's Communist Party called on members to "dare show their swords and fight against all kind of behaviour that interferes with and destroys the overall efforts against the pandemic" in an open letter on Wednesday night. Shanghai has sufficient reserves of staples such as rice and meat, but issues have cropped up in distribution and last-mile deliveries because of epidemic control measures, Shanghai's vice mayor Chen Tong said at a news conference on Thursday. He said the city would try to reopen some wholesale markets and food stores and allow more delivery personnel out of locked-down areas. Officials will also crack down on price gouging, he added. "In response to the various problems reported by the public, we have been holding meetings overnight to try and figure out solutions," he said. Many residents are beginning to worry about food and drinking water, as well as obtaining products such as infant formula. Watch | China reports highest ever-daily cases, 'Shanghai insufficiently prepared,' says top official Some have complained on social media waking up at dawn for a chance at booking a grocery delivery, but finding them sold out within seconds. Others have turned to community WeChat groups to try to bulk-buy fruit and vegetables. Social media users have also widely shared outrage over individual tragedies, including the alleged suicide of woman after being cyberbullied for paying too little to a delivery worker, and a healthcare worker beating to death a corgi after its owner allegedly was taken to quarantine. Reuters could not independently verify either story. Shanghai, which has been conducting multiple rounds of testing, reported close to 20,000 new locally transmitted cases for Wednesday, 98% of which it said where asymptomatic. However, there are signs that transmission is still happening in spite of the lockdowns. Of its 19,660 asymptomatic infections, 633 involved people who were not under quarantine or who faced control measures, the data showed. Shanghai denied rumours on Wednesday that it planned to suspend all delivery services amid concerns that the virus was being spread through such workers. It requires them to take PCR and antigen tests every day, and they can only deliver goods if they test negative. Also read | Shanghai eases child separation under COVID policy but extends lockdown China's most-populous city has yet to give an indication of when lockdown measures will lift, fuelling uncertainty and prompting European businesses and economists to warn about the mounting toll they are having on its economy and attractiveness as an international financial hub. Although Shanghai's case numbers remain small by global standards, the city has emerged as a test bed for China's "dynamic clearance" anti-Covid strategy, which seeks to test, trace and centrally quarantine all positive cases and their close contacts. On Thursday, Shanghai city officials said they would continue to conduct more testing among its residents who will be asked to take PCR or self-administered antigen tests. Shanghai has converted dozens of buildings into quarantine facilities that can house tens of thousands of positive cases. Also read | Shanghai's COVID 'mission impossible': 38k health workers deployed, sampling of 25 million residents completed On Tuesday construction began on a new facility that can house 40,000 beds will be finished by Friday, local media The Paper said on Thursday. Late on Wednesday, the China News Service said the neighbouring provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang will also provide 60,000 more rooms which patients from Shanghai can quarantine.

Shanghai vows to improve food deliveries as discontent grows over Covid curbs

Basketball followers on mainland China expressed anger at the US&nbsp;National Basketball Association on Wednesday after a <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinese-organisers-cancel-nba-fan-event-amid-free-speech-row-254851">fan event in Shanghai was canceled</a>, amid a&nbsp;row&nbsp;over&nbsp;free&nbsp;speech&nbsp;that has hurt the league's reputation in a key overseas market.

Chinese&nbsp;organisers scrapped the event on the eve of a planned exhibition game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets, as the&nbsp;fallout&nbsp;spread&nbsp;from&nbsp;a tweet by Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey supporting recent protests in Hong Kong.

Pro-democracy demonstrators have taken to the streets of the city over fears that Beijing is undermining Hong Kong's "one country, two systems" formula, which gives residents greater&nbsp;freedom than mainland&nbsp;Chinese.

China has warned foreign governments to steer clear of the issue which they deem an "internal affair".

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/despite-consequences-nba-boss-defends-values-in-china-row-254649">NBA&nbsp;Commissioner Adam Silver said on Tuesday</a> that the league supported Morey's right to exercise his&nbsp;freedom of expression, furthering angering&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;authorities.

"They (the&nbsp;NBA) have done something really stupid," said Bai Linfan, a 20-year-old fan in Shanghai. "This is something that is really about our nationality. That's the biggest thing. Cancelling these cooperations and exchanges is quite normal."

Another young fan, Li Xintong, said the&nbsp;NBA&nbsp;needed to do more to understand China's view on the matter.

"If the pre-season match is cancelled, I don't really care, because I think this thing has already violated our country's bottom line about a few issues," he said.

"If the&nbsp;NBA&nbsp;really wants to expand in China's market, they must understand&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;culture."

The reaction to the&nbsp;row&nbsp;has been very different in Hong Kong itself.

"I don't think he (Silver) is mixing up sports and politics. I think he was speaking as a US&nbsp;citizen on this occasion. I'm really grateful for his support and the support of the majority of US&nbsp;citizens," said&nbsp;NBA&nbsp;fan Keith Yuen.

For one fan hoping to catch a glimpse of the players in Shanghai, sport and politics should not be mixed.

"I don't know why political conflicts affect sporting events. Just because they don't want us to see Morey's comments on TV, the&nbsp;fans' night has been cancelled," said Yu Jie.

"I'm patriotic of course. I support (the view) that Hong Kong is part of China, but I just don't understand this."

Basketball followers on mainland China expressed anger at the US National Basketball Association on Wednesday after a fan event in Shanghai was canceled, amid a row over free speech that has hurt the league's reputation in a key overseas market.

Basketball followers on mainland China expressed anger at the US National Basketball Association on Wednesday after a fan event in Shanghai was canceled, amid a row over free speech that has hurt the league's reputation in a key overseas market. Chinese organisers scrapped the event on the eve of a planned exhibition game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets, as the fallout spread from a tweet by Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey supporting recent protests in Hong Kong. Pro-democracy demonstrators have taken to the streets of the city over fears that Beijing is undermining Hong Kong's "one country, two systems" formula, which gives residents greater freedom than mainland Chinese. China has warned foreign governments to steer clear of the issue which they deem an "internal affair". NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said on Tuesday that the league supported Morey's right to exercise his freedom of expression, furthering angering Chinese authorities. "They (the NBA) have done something really stupid," said Bai Linfan, a 20-year-old fan in Shanghai. "This is something that is really about our nationality. That's the biggest thing. Cancelling these cooperations and exchanges is quite normal." Another young fan, Li Xintong, said the NBA needed to do more to understand China's view on the matter. "If the pre-season match is cancelled, I don't really care, because I think this thing has already violated our country's bottom line about a few issues," he said. "If the NBA really wants to expand in China's market, they must understand Chinese culture." The reaction to the row has been very different in Hong Kong itself. "I don't think he (Silver) is mixing up sports and politics. I think he was speaking as a US citizen on this occasion. I'm really grateful for his support and the support of the majority of US citizens," said NBA fan Keith Yuen. For one fan hoping to catch a glimpse of the players in Shanghai, sport and politics should not be mixed. "I don't know why political conflicts affect sporting events. Just because they don't want us to see Morey's comments on TV, the fans' night has been cancelled," said Yu Jie. "I'm patriotic of course. I support (the view) that Hong Kong is part of China, but I just don't understand this."

Chinese fans fume at NBA as fallout from free speech row spreads

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Shanghai vows to improve food deliveries as discontent grows over Covid curbs

Chinese fans fume at NBA as fallout from free speech row spreads