Regional AlertChina is bracing for a massive new wave of COVID cases. What this means for the rest of the world May 28, 2023By MBDS Team24 May 2023. A spring festival flower market in Guangzhou reopens on Jan. 20 after closures to prevent the spread of COVID. Cases of Omicron variant XBB are mounting in China, forming a new wave expected to crest around 65 million cases weekly by the end of June.