Moving trucks and vehicles with diplomatic plates pulled out of a US Consulate in southwest China on Sunday, as its impending closure over rising bilateral tensions drew a steady stream of onlookers for the second straight day.

People stopped to take selfies and photos, jamming a sidewalk busy with shoppers and families with strollers on a sunny day in Chengdu. A little boy posed with a small Chinese flag before plainclothes police shooed him away as foreign media cameras zoomed in.