China's small commodity hub offers free accommodation for returning personnel during isolation

The eastern Chinese city of Yiwu has arranged 40,000 beds for personnel who are ordered to receive isolation observation after returning from their hometowns after the Spring Festival holiday amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, local authorities said Wednesday.

During the isolation, the city government will offer free accommodation for these people including workers and local market retailers and vendors.

Returning personnel are required to report their whereabouts for the past 14 days and their contact with people from areas hit hard by the novel coronavirus, including Hubei Province and the cities of Wenzhou and Taizhou in eastern China's Zhejiang Province. They are also required to report their physical health status and that of the people living with them to their villages, communities and workplaces, according to the city government.

Yiwu is home to the world's leading small commodities market. In 2019, there were more than 1.4 million non-natives and 15,000 overseas businesspeople in Yiwu.

As of Tuesday, Yiwu reported a total of 14 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection.