(excerpted from CNN reports)

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Shanghai is bedecked in the glory of its gleaming skyscrapers, APEC flags flutter blue, red, green and orange along every main road and security is everywhere.

But the city has ground to a standstill, with schools and businesses given a five-day holiday through Sunday. Subways are shut.

The business district of Pudong, the heart of Shanghai commerce and site of the APEC event, has a touch of the feel of a ghost town Wednesday.

A gusty wind dusts through Pudong's wide avenues, which are half-empty.

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