Photo: Face masks on sale in Beijing
Source: Legal Evening News

Jan 15, 2013
Translated by Chen Min

Following the heavy air pollution that engulfed Beijing and other areas of China on Saturday, demand for all kinds of air filtering equipment has rocketed, with demand for face masks causing some pharmacies in Beijing to run short of stock.  

According to a report in Sunday's Legal Evening News, despite face masks selling for more than 30 yuan, some pharamacies in the capital were almost out of stock.

According to data available on Taobao, China's dominant online retail website, there was also a dramatic increase in the sale of face masks following the release of the record PM2.5 figures on Saturday. The sales of one kind of mask, the "N95 medical-use face mask" (N95医用口罩), jumped by more than 10 times over the weekend.

Cao Jingui (曹晋桂), director of the Department of Infection Control at Beijing's Air Force General Hospital, said, "N95", "N99" and other professional masks work well to protect against infectious respiratory diseases and therefore advised that they should be used during this period. Dr. Cao noted that ordinary cotton masks only keep out the dust.

Links and Sources
Legal Evening News: 北京市民抢购“PM2.5口罩” 部分药店断货