Amid mysterious runs on toilet paper from Singapore to Sydney, world’s No 2 producer says shortage rumour holds no water

Vinda International Holdings says the company would resume work next week at its Hubei factory, bringing the last of its 12 production lines back online

The company is on track to churn out 1.3 million tonnes of paper this year, its chief executive said

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Customers grabbing their toilet paper supply at a supermarket in Hong Kong, on Friday, February 14, 2020. Photo: AP

Published: 8:15am, 7 Mar 2020Updated: 2:57pm, 10 Mar 2020

Johann Christoph Michalski, the chief executive of Vinda International Holdings, was incredulous when word started spreading on social media in early February that toilet paper was about to run out in Hong Kong.

Within days, supermarket shelves across the city would stand empty as long queues of shoppers made off with multiple bags of toilet paper rolls in the misguided belief that a coronavirus outbreak in mainland China would disrupt supplies. The self-fulfilling prophecy soon found its way around the world, with similar reports of panic shopping for toilet rolls, tissue paper from Singapore to Sydney.

“There are no supply shortages in Hong Kong or in China,” Michalski said in an interview with South China Morning Post, adding that people should not believe everything they read on social media.

Whatever shortage reported at the shops were “actually created by panic buying, rather than the ability of the industry to provide products,” he said. “Panic buying is very disruptive to our logistics, customers and manufacturing.”

Johann Christoph Michalski, chief executive officer of Vinda International Holdings. Photo: Sohu

The panic hoarding of toilet paper added to the rush for surgical masks, rubber gloves, disinfectants, and other daily necessities, going some ways to explain why Vinda’s shares soared 48 per cent this year on the Hong Kong stock exchange, outperforming the 7.2 per cent decline on the benchmark Hang Seng Index. Vinda’s shares closed Friday at HK$21, for a weekly gain of 4.7 per cent.