As Party luminaries gather in Beijing for a twice-a-decade congress, two issues loom large over the official pomp and positivity: COVID-19 and China’s floundering property markets.

COVID lockdowns are mounting in the lead-up to the Party Congress – a politically sensitive time made all the more so by President Xi’s expected appointment to a norm-defying third term in power (the event has already been the subject of the customary coup rumors that precede every turnover of high-level CCP leaders).