China to start issuing new passports as virus curbs ease

Passengers prepare to board a flight at the airport in north-central China's Jiangxi province on Nov. 1, 2022. [AP]

The Chinese government says it will start issuing new passports as it dismantles anti-virus travel barriers, setting up a potential flood of millions of tourists out of China for next month's Lunar New Year holiday.

That raises the possibility of an influx of free-spending Chinese visitors to revenue-starved destinations in Asia and Europe in what usually is the country's busiest travel season. But it also presents a danger tourists might spread COVID-19 as infections surge in China.