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Jasmine Siu

Zoe Low

Hong Kong supermarkets are struggling to restock shelves as a buying frenzy continues amid fears over the coronavirus outbreak, with some shoppers urging the government to try to restore the public’s confidence.
Those looking for cleaning supplies, tissue paper and dry goods again found only empty shelves in stores across the city on Friday as supermarkets waited on supplies.
Some shoppers turned to buying confectionery, snacks and drinks, despite food merchants assuring the public just a day earlier that there would not be a food shortage.
Three grocery stores in Sai Ying Pun said they were expecting to restock rice on Saturday.
An employee at a ParknShop supermarket said the staple was normally restocked four times a week. “But whether there will be supply, we are not sure yet,” he added.


The same store saw shelves emptied of chocolate, biscuits, wafers, frozen dumplings and bottled water.
A store assistant at Market Place by Jasons said staff had restocked six big trolleys of toilet paper on Thursday night but the entire stock was quickly sold out.
“People immediately swarmed in, you couldn’t even get to the shelf,” he said.
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Anxious Hongkongers have been scrambling for days to stock up on essentials over fears that border restrictions to contain the coronavirus will choke off supplies. A mandatory quarantine takes effect at midnight on Friday on everyone arriving from mainland China.
At Yata Supermarket in Kennedy Town, staff displayed stacks of boxed tissues at the entrance, which drew a continuous flow of shoppers.
Among them was housewife Mrs Lo, 69, who had been looking for toilet paper and settled for five boxes of tissue instead.

“I have to shop for my children and grandchildren,” she said. “Now I’m wondering how to carry them home.”
Another shopper, who did not want to be identified, bought three boxes. “I’ve been looking for them everywhere,” she said, while rushing to the counter. “It’s a nightmare, people are crazy. But I have children so I need tissues.”
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A ParknShop supermarket at So Uk Estate in Cheung Sha Wan had put up a notice that all hand sanitisers and personal hygiene products had sold out, while Wellcome displayed signs saying each customer was only allowed to buy two of each item which had been selling out in the past few days, such as toilet paper and rice.
Other sold-out products included shower gel, sanitary towels, cleaning products, frozen dumplings, noodles, cooking oil, bottled water and bread. Canned goods were also running low.


At three supermarkets in Sham Shui Po, shoppers looking for toilet paper were told to come back another day.
Chow, a woman in her 50s who runs a shop selling prayer materials in Sham Shui Po, went to her local Wellcome branch to buy tissues to use in her shop, but left empty-handed.
“This is crazy. I think people need to calm down, but I also think it is because they have lost trust in the government,” she said.
Chow said the government could learn from its counterpart in Macau, particularly in ensuring a stable supply of masks so people did not panic.


While she was not concerned about food supply to the city, Chow said she still felt the government had to intervene and at least try to reassure people. “At this rate, soon it won’t just be panic buying. People will start robbing each other,” Chow said.
Her views were shared by Mrs Kwok, a 68-year-old retired transport worker.
“Had the government addressed the public, people would not be so worried and would stop scrambling for food,” Kwok said.
Construction worker Mr Chan, 45, said he needed to see real action from the government.
“It’s not enough to tell us there will be a lot of supply,” he said, while carrying six big bottles of Coke and sugared tea. “We have to see it. It’s bad enough that we had to queue for masks.”
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Dr Lawrence Ho Ka-ki, a public policy specialist at the Education University, said the panic buying was spurred by a lack of confidence in the city’s leadership, which was not helped by months of anti-government protests.
“The [eight] months of protests have further compounded the situation but now we are seeing a wave of general anger towards the government from all sides of the political spectrum,” he said. “The government needs to take swift action.”


It did not matter what the government did, Ho added: whether it was a soft border closure or a complete lockdown, the government had to be seen as able to take command and prevent a community outbreak within the next few days.
He also said the government needed to step in to coordinate resources, particularly protective gear such as surgical masks, so that residents did not feel like they were helpless and unable to protect themselves and their families.
“Hongkongers are rational people, if nothing big happens no one will go against the government,” he said.
The government on Friday referred back to a statement released on Wednesday, which condemned “rumourmongers with evil intentions” for spreading false information about supplies.
“The government’s measures in disease prevention and control will not affect the freight services between the mainland and Hong Kong,” the statement said.
It said it had confirmed with major firms that food supply remained normal.


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Health & Environment

Society


Those looking for cleaning supplies, tissue paper and dry goods again found only empty shelves in stores across the city
Shoppers turn to buying confectionery, snacks and drinks, despite food merchants assuring the public there will not be a food shortage



Those looking for cleaning supplies, tissue paper and dry goods again found only empty shelves in stores across the city.


Coronavirus: panic buying shows no sign of ending in Hong Kong as shoppers urge government to try to restore public’s confidence

Those looking for cleaning supplies, tissue paper and dry goods again found only empty shelves in stores across the city Shoppers turn to buying confectionery, snacks and drinks, despite food merchants assuring the public there will not be a food shortage

Those looking for cleaning supplies, tissue paper and dry goods again found only empty shelves in stores across the city

Shoppers turn to buying confectionery, snacks and drinks, despite food merchants assuring the public there will not be a food shortage