According to the World Health Organization website, as of March 10, the number of countries and regions outside China affected by the new coronavirus epidemic has reached 101. The epidemic situation has worsened in many European countries. The number of confirmed cases in Germany and France has exceeded 1,000, and the number of cases in Spain has exceeded 900. The situation in Italy is even more severe.
As the global epidemic spreads, the demand for masks has increased explosively, and many countries have experienced “mask shortages.” The conflict between Germany and Switzerland over masks has even escalated to a diplomatic level.
We are flooded with people from overseas trying to grab masks.
“The demand for masks in South Korea has increased by 7650%” “An ordinary box of medical masks in Japan sells for 13,000 yuan” “The online shopping price of a mask in Italy has increased from 10 euro cents to 10 euros ( (approximately RMB 76.2)” “FFP2 masks in Spanish pharmacies, each sold for RMB 2,200.” “On eBay, a truck with 80 pallets of medical surgical masks was sold out in an instant. These masks were the remaining inventory from the HINI flu in 2009.” Some European Chinese traders took advantage of the time difference in epidemic information to first buy locally and They hoard masks and resell them to local people at high prices. The 50pz boxed masks that usually cost 2.5 euros were sold for up to 200 euros! In major cities such as Milan, Paris, London, Brussels, and Amsterdam, masks have been sold out and disinfection supplies are in short supply.
According to the “Zurcher Zeitung am Sonntag” report, Switzerland had been importing medical supplies from Germany, and when the epidemic hit, it ordered a large number of masks from German companies. A German company purchased masks from abroad last week and resold some to Switzerland. Unexpectedly, on March 4, the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs issued a ban on the export of masks abroad and detained a truck on the German-Swiss border containing 240,000 masks planned to be shipped to Switzerland. Subsequently, Switzerland urgently summoned the German ambassador to protest against the export ban and demanded that Germany release it immediately.
Regarding masks, countries around the world are engaged in a “battle”.
United States: Mask inventory only accounts for 1% of total demand, with a gap as high as 90%. The United States has canceled tariffs on more than 100 Chinese medical products including masks
According to a report on the USA Today website, on February 25 , the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reminded the public that they should be prepared for the new coronavirus epidemic, which may cause a heavy blow to the United States. Within 24 hours after the CDC news was released, the price of medical masks on online sales platforms rose rapidly. According to data from price tracking company Keepa, the price of a pack of 100 general-purpose blue disposable masks on Amazon has increased from US$4.21 to US$14.99.
▲Keepa data tracking Mask prices change. Picture/Keepa
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends that healthy people do not wear masks in their epidemic prevention guidelines. Some American netizens questioned on social media whether it was because there were not enough masks that they told everyone not to wear them.
According to US media CNBC, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) stated on the 3rd that if the new coronavirus outbreak becomes a “full-blown” pandemic in the United States, approximately 3.5 billion medical supplies will be needed. There are currently only 35 million N95 masks, and the existing inventory only accounts for 1% of demand.
With the spread of the epidemic, the domestic demand for related medical supplies in the United States has also increased sharply. According to a survey involving 6,500 nurses released by the National Nurses Federation on March 5, only 29% of nurses currently said that their hospitals have formulated plans to isolate suspected patients with the new coronavirus, and 44% of nurses have responded. Virus guidance. 63% of nurses said they have access to N95 masks, while only 25% have access to higher-level powered air-purifying respirators.
On March 6, local time, US President Trump signed an emergency appropriation bill of US$8.3 billion, part of which will be used to purchase 500 million masks.
On March 6, the Office of the United States Trade Representative updated its official website information to show that more than 100 medical products imported from China, such as masks, gloves, disinfectant wipes, surgical drapes, and surgical gowns, are exempted. As for import tariffs, 27 American companies have been approved so far.
It is worth noting that since Trump imposed tariffs on goods from China, the procedures for excluding product tariffs Often it takes several months. However, since the outbreak of the epidemic in the United States, the U.S. government has accelerated the review and approval of tariff exclusion requests for many medical products, and the approval time is only more than one month before the deadline for submission of applications. Applications for AirPods headphones submitted by Apple at the end of October last year are still being processed.
On September 1 last year, the United States implemented the fourth round of tariffs on China, covering medical supplies. The tax rate on medical supplies was originally set at 15%. China and the United States signed the firstShizuoka Prefecture Councilor Hiroyuki Moroda has used his personal account to auction masks online as many as 89 times since February 4. A set of 2,000 masks sold for a maximum price of about 170,000 yen (approximately RMB 11,000). The transaction was completed, and the total sales volume was approximately 8.88 million yen. On March 9, Hiroyuki Moroda apologized for the auction of masks and stated that he would donate all the proceeds from the auction.
Chinese masks have been exported to South Korea since yesterday
According to the website of the Chinese Embassy in South Korea, the spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in South Korea on the 9th It said that in order to support the South Korean government and people in fighting the new coronavirus epidemic and help South Korea solve the mask supply problem, China will export masks to South Korea from March 10, with the first batch of 5 million pieces, including ordinary medical masks and N95 masks.
The spokesperson said that China will continue to export masks to South Korea in the future. The above decision has been notified to the South Korean government through diplomatic channels.
The spokesperson said that this is a decision made by the Chinese government to overcome its own difficulties, which reflects the neighborly and friendship between China and South Korea who help each other and help each other in times of difficulty. China is willing to work with South Korea to strengthen material mutual assistance, share information and experience, and carry out joint prevention and control cooperation, so as to jointly defeat the epidemic as soon as possible.
Previously, the Chinese government had decided to provide 1.1 million masks and 10,000 sets of medical protective clothing to South Korea.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded on the 9th: In addition to the central government level, many local governments and enterprises in China have recently expressed condolences and support to South Korea and actively provided anti-epidemic measures within their capabilities. epidemic material assistance. According to the information I have at hand, as of March 8, local governments in Shanghai, Shandong, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Jilin and other countries have donated a batch of epidemic prevention materials to South Korea through sister cities and other channels. In addition, Anhui, Jiangsu, Henan and other places are also preparing to donate epidemic prevention materials to South Korea.
The Beijing News reporter noticed that as the global epidemic intensifies, whether China exports masks and raw materials abroad has become the focus of attention.
Previously, foreign media reported that China banned the export of medical masks and raw materials needed for production due to the new coronavirus epidemic, causing other countries and regions to face mask shortages.
On the 5th, Li Xingqian, Director of the Foreign Trade Department of the Ministry of Commerce, responded that masks are free trade products and “the Chinese government has not set up any trade control measures.” Since the outbreak, the Ministry of Commerce has never issued a ban on the export of masks and their production raw materials. Companies can carry out relevant trade in accordance with market-oriented principles. China is willing to provide relevant countries with assistance within its capacity in terms of masks and other medical protective supplies.
Editor’s note:
According to customs statistics, my country exported 13.7725 billion textile yarns, fabrics and products from January to February 2020 US dollar, down 19.9% year-on-year. From January to February 2020, my country’s exports of clothing and clothing accessories were US$16.0623 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 20.0%. Do textile exports need to be saved by masks and protective clothing?
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