SHANGHAI, June 3 ― A report today that the Chinese city of Wuhan was in talks with Walt Disney Co over a potential project was fake, Chinese official media said, citing the company.

The central province of Hubei deleted a statement from its official account on the WeChat social media platform that had said the commerce bureau of Wuhan, the provincial capital, had started initial talks with Disney on starting a project there.

The state-backed Shanghai Securities News cited Murray King, vice president of public affairs and communications at Shanghai Disney Resort, as saying reports of talks with Wuhan were "fake news”.

Disney did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment. The Hubei and Wuhan governments did not respond to calls outside business hours.

Several Chinese cities have been on a drive to engage with foreign investors since the start of the year after the country lifted its harsh Covid-19 restrictions.

Covid was first detected in Wuhan in late 2019.

Disney opened the US$5.5 billion Shanghai Disney Resort in 2016. The resort in China's financial hub had over 11 million visitors in its debut year, though figures were hit during the pandemic. ― Reuters