The residents of Chengde and Xinle, in Hebei province, will have to stay at home until the end of this week.
In addition, more than 13 million residents of Tianjin, in addition to Beijing, are to undergo a PCR test on Tuesday after more than 80 positive cases emerged in two days.
China’s policy to stop the coronavirus is the strictest in the world. While the rest of the world tries to live with the virus, Beijing continues to repeatedly impose lengthy lockdowns and massive tests on its people. Foreigners are still largely barred and those who are allowed to enter the country are obliged to stay in quarantine in a hotel for seven days.
That policy has major implications for the economy and will not be eased before the 20th Communist Party Congress, which will take place in the coming months. President Xi Jinping will receive a third mandate at that congress.
All 31 provinces in mainland China recorded at least one local infection in the past 10 days, which is the broadest exposure to the virus since at least February 2021.