Face Mask Sales Soar in Japan amid Swine Flu Concern

Tokyo, April 30 (Jiji Press)--More and more Japanese are shopping
for face masks as a preventive measure against swine flu.

Sales of masks at drugstores, supermarkets and convenience stores
are soaring, and makers are running at full capacity to meet rapidly
increasing demand.
The spread of swine flu gives an exceptional boost to mask sales as
demand is usually sluggish at this time of the year when the annual hay
fever season is over.
Cocokara Fine Holdings Inc. <3098>, which owns Seijo and Drug
Segami drugstore chains, saw daily sales of high-end face masks rise 1.5 to
two times higher this week than last week.
At one store in Kansai International Airport near Osaka, western
Japan, sales of face high-end masks rose sixfold.
At FamilyMart Co. <8028>, a major convenience store chain, mask
sales this week were double as high as last week.
Major maker Hakugen Co. received orders for as many as 100,000
professional-use masks Monday and Tuesday together from supermarkets and
drugstores.
Other mask manufacturers, such as Unicharm Corp. <8113> and Japan
Vilene Co. <3514>, have hiked output to full capacity.