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Chinese mask maker rushing to fill orders, has $50 mn in orders

Wuhan Zonsen, which makes masks and disinfection wipes, says $US50 million ($A79 million) in orders from European countries and the United States will keep them at full production capacity until June.

April 13, 2020 / 13:09 IST

One mask producer in China is rushing to fill orders from overseas while facing stricter quality inspections from Chinese regulators.

Wuhan Zonsen, which makes masks and disinfection wipes, says $US50 million ($A79 million) in orders from European countries and the United States will keep them at full production capacity until June.

COVID-19 pandemic LIVE updates

"Now the major demand of masks comes from European countries and the US where the epidemic is severe ... their demand now has increased to 10 times than before because of the epidemic," said Cynthia Ye, global marketing manager of Zonsen.

Zonsen plans to add another five production lines to increase their daily production from 200,000 to 700,000 masks, Zonsen's production managers told reporters during a media tour organised by the Wuhan government.

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Chinese customs have announced that ventilators, masks and other supplies being exported to fight the coronavirus will be subject to quality inspections following complaints that substandard goods were being sold abroad.

Also read: RBI MPC minutes: Coronavirus’ ‘danse macabre’ warrants monetary policy to assume an ‘avant garde’ role

Regulators in Australia, the Netherlands and other countries have complained that masks, virus test kits and other products were faulty or failed to meet quality standards.

Wuhan on Wednesday ended its 76-day lockdown, allowing residents to again travel in and out of the city. Wuhan and China are expected to suffer severe economic costs and tens of millions of job losses from the city closure.

AP News
first published: Apr 13, 2020 01:09 pm

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