HONG KONG (Bloomberg): Hong Kong has been struggling with a shortage of face masks to protect against the coronavirus outbreak. The cause of the toilet paper shortage was not immediately clear, but speculation was rife on social media about possible holdups involving the supply chain in mainland China. The city's government said late on Wednesday that it regretted that the "malicious act of spreading rumours" caused shortages of products like rice and toilet paper. One man carrying a sack of toilet paper rolls on the street on Wednesday evening said a friend had lined up to get them. "We went to five stores and no toilet paper," said Lok Gork, 30, a designer living in Hong Kong.

Source: The Star February 06, 2020 04:30 UTC