China's Face Mask Production Boom Is Fading

Tens of thousands of face mask manufacturers sprang up across China in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, but many of them are pulling out in the face of increasingly stringent quality management measures and falling domestic demand.

The report notes that some companies that rushed into the mask industry are now pulling out. Some companies contacted by AFP reported a sharp drop in orders and some said they were refocusing their operations. Now that the epidemic in mainland China is basically under control, the demand for protective face masks in China has dropped sharply, leading to a drop in prices.

A shenzhen company that made air purifiers later started making masks. "Our orders have been reduced by a fifth to a sixth since April," said Yang Hao, the company's sales director. "Now we don't need to make masks every day," he said. The report notes that some companies that rushed into the mask industry are now pulling out. Some companies contacted by AFP reported a sharp drop in orders and some said they were refocusing their operations.

"Our company has several production lines and increased the production of masks when the epidemic was serious, but we will shift the focus back to other products in the future," said Mr. Xu, a sales director at a medical products company in northern Hebei province. Mr. Xu said the company now sells masks for 0.4 yuan each -- a quarter of the price at the peak of the epidemic in China earlier this year. The Chinese government now requires companies wanting to export masks to obtain a certificate of quality, a move that has also hit some smaller manufacturers, the report said.

From March to May, China exported more than 50 billion masks -- 10 times the total for 2019, according to analysts. Analysts believe China will remain the world's top supplier of masks and face mask machines. As the pandemic continues to ravage the world, big companies will increase production. Last month, U.S. manufacturer 3M Co. said it would make 2 billion N95 masks this year, roughly doubling production.