Coronavirus: rice, toilet paper and dried goods fly off shelves as rumours spark panic buying in Hong Kong
- Hygiene products including tissues , wipes, hand soaps and disinfectants also among bestselling items in supermarkets
- A major supermarket chain dismissed online claims of impending toilet paper shortages as ‘solid rumour’.
But many were disappointed to find rice and sought-after household sanitising items, such as bleach and disinfectant, continued to be in short supply.
Latecomers in search of toilet paper were greeted by empty shelves, after sales were partly spurred by online claims of impending shortages, which a major supermarket chain dismissed as a “solid rumour”.
Most shoppers wore masks, with a cautious few taking the extra step of wearing gloves as they scoured shelves to fill their trolleys.
In Kowloon Bay, hygiene products including tissue paper, wipes, hand soaps and disinfectants were among the bestselling items in two supermarkets. Some shoppers also snapped up kitchen towels.
At Taste supermarket in Kowloon Tong, signs were put up reminding shoppers to limit their purchases of rice, bleach, hand sanitisers and disinfectant to two units each.