we begin in china where as you ve been hearing there were hugs and tears as international travellers arrived in china yesterday without the need to quarantine for the first time since the early stages of the covid pandemic. the strict quarantine rules had been in place for nearly three years. their lifting marks the end of beijing s zero covid policy, which had caused growing public anger. in hong kong, 400,000 people are expected to travel into mainland china in the coming weeks with long queues for flights into cities including beijing and xiamen. so what impact will the reopening of china have on the country s economy? let s go live to hong kong and talk to iris pang chief greater china economist at ing. lovely to see you. for many people this is what they have been waiting for for so long where they have not seen family or been able to return home. give us your take on the impact this is happening. i give us your take on the impact this is happening. this is happening.
this morning the wnba star brittney griner is in a moscow court for her first trial hearing, this after russian authorities accused her of smuggling drugs into the country. griner has already spent the last 130 days in a russian jail. officials have now extended her detention for six months pending the outcome of this trial. we should note the state department has said griner has been, quote, wrongfully detained. last night, cnn s abby phillip sat down with griner s wife for an exclusive interview. you ll hear part of that conversation in just a moment. back at home, though, new developments in the january 6th investigation. sources tell cnn that someone tried to influence the testimony of cassidy hutchinson, the former trump white house aide who shared damning details about what the former president was doing as the capitol attack unfolded. we ll have much more on that just ahead. we begin, though, this morning, in moscow. cnn s senior international correspondent frederik
know. the chinese government has not released covid numbers for several days so we do not have the information. but if we look at, for example, the volume it has increased and it means that the weather, people are getting used to, gradually, to living with covid and there for passenger volumes continue to rise. , ., ., . ~ for passenger volumes continue to rise. , ., ., ., ~ ., to rise. great to talk to you. thank you to rise. great to talk to you. thank you for to rise. great to talk to you. thank you for your - to rise. great to talk to you. thank you for your time. - here in the uk businesses are waiting to find out what support they will be getting from the government for their energy bills, when the scheme expires at the end of march. many firms have been warning of a cliff edge , saying they will be unable to pay their bills if the government doesn t continue to help with the high cost of energy. well, according to sources at the treasury who have spoken
reporter: and that gentleman, he is not alone. a lot of people echoing that sentiment. so let s break down the exact numbers. what exactly are we going to see from travelers this weekend? the gas prices certainly a factor, but it doesn t appear, anyway, according it the aaa forecast for independence day weekend that it is holding back all that many people because when you look at their forecast, they expect 42 million travelers to be driving this weekend, and that s an increase from last year, and a record-breaking number, 3.5 million people in the airports and 2.5 million that will be traveling this july 4th weekend through some other means. yeah. leyla santiago, in miami, thanks so much. airlines are preparing for passenger volumes not seen since before the pandemic, they say. already more than 200 flights canceled, 800 delayed. that number expected to grow throughout the day. american airline the group
it could get worse. it says there is potential for further disruption, as more people start travelling again, and passenger volumes at key ports like dover return to normal. there s also concern about extra delays later this year, when the eu introduces new passport controls and the uk starts physical checks on the import of food products. the government is taking a longer view. it talks enthusiastically about new trade deals elsewhere in the world, and says it plans to create the most effective border in the world by 2025. the committee calls that a noteworthy ambition, but optimistic, given where things stand today. chris morris, bbc news. joining me now is philip rycroft, who served as the permanent secretary at the department for exiting the european union from 2017 to 2019. did you price all of this in? it was all triced did you price all of this in? it was all priced in- did you price all of this in? it was all priced in. the did you price all of this in? it was