New Zealand Extends Lockdown in Largest City Auckland Until the 21st

Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand [Photo by AFP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] New Zealand announced on the 13th that it will extend the Level 4 COVID-19 alert lockdown in the Auckland region until the 21st.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stated after the Cabinet meeting that the lockdown in the Auckland region will be extended for another week, and in principle, the alert level will be lowered to Level 3 at midnight on the 21st (local time). Ardern added that the rest of the country, excluding Auckland, will maintain Level 2 alert until then, and the adjustment of alert levels will be discussed again at the Cabinet meeting on the 20th.

On the same day, New Zealand reported 33 cases of community transmission of the Delta variant virus only in the Auckland region.

Accordingly, since the 17th of last month, the total number of Delta variant community transmission cases in New Zealand has increased to 955, including 938 cases in Auckland and 17 cases in Wellington.

New Zealand issued a nationwide lockdown on the first day the Delta variant infection was confirmed, then lowered the COVID-19 alert to Level 3 on the 1st for regions excluding Auckland, and further lowered it to Level 2 on the 8th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.