At a time when much of Hong Kong society is gripped by fear about the surge in novel coronavirus infections, the latest economic signal, indicating a major deterioration in the special administrative region's business conditions, has added to the gloom.

Reflecting the impact of the latest spate of infections, the IHS Markit PMI reading for July, released on Wednesday, has dropped by 5.1 percentage points to 44.5, well below the boom/bust line of 50. The figure, which is indicative of both current and future business conditions, does not bode well for the city's unemployment rate — which is already at a 15-year high of 6.2 percent — if conditions do not improve soon.

Arresting the spread of the coronavirus is therefore not only necessary to protect the health and lives of Hong Kong residents, but also to protect the livelihoods of people in the SAR, many of whom are struggling to make ends meet.

The public health authorities in the SAR have left no stone unturned in their efforts to fight the virus. That Hong Kong has failed to contain the latest rise in infections some three weeks after it started suggests the full support of all residents for the government's efforts is necessary to defeat the virus.

Unfortunately, greed and politics stand in the way of the cooperation that is desperately needed at this critical moment. Opposition to and vilification of anti-pandemic assistance from the Chinese mainland persist.

Objections to mainland assistance in enhancing the SAR's nucleic acid testing capacity have been raised by several local medical and laboratories' associations on the pretext of maintaining "standards" and "safety". They demand that any mainland support teams comply with local regulations, a process that normally takes up to six months.

The truth is, the cost of a novel coronavirus nucleic acid test is as low as $22 on the mainland, whereas private hospitals and laboratories in Hong Kong charge as much as HK$3,000 ($387). The proposal, floated recently by members of the local medical sector, that the SAR government give HK$3,000 as a subsidy to each resident to enable them to get a test in local hospitals and laboratories has inadvertently revealed the naked truth of their "standards" and "safety" arguments.

More disgusting is that political zealots have spared no effort in trying to undermine anti-pandemic cooperation between the SAR and the mainland, spreading rumors such as mainland assistance efforts are intended to collect the DNA data of Hong Kong residents. They are redefining the term "political opposition" by putting politics ahead of human lives.