An employee of Chinese face mask maker Dasheng Health Products Manufacture Co works at the company's factory in Shanghai, East China on February 13. Photo: Yang Hui/GT

Some Chinese face mask producers are ready to export face masks to Japan and South Korea, as the ferocious coronavirus outbreak neared an inflection point in China but seemingly surged in some of its neighbors in recent days, which led to booming demand for disease prevention materials. 

But a couple of domestic experts cautioned China should focus on fulfilling domestic needs instead of exporting as certain regions are still short of medical supplies like face masks. 

Chen Lianjie, general manager of protective suits maker Zhejiang Longtai Medical Technology Co, said that the company has arranged four automated production lines to produce face masks that are tailor-made for Japanese and South Korean clients.

"We expect production to start gradually around the end of February," Chen said. "Japanese and South Korean customers frequently inquired about [face masks] but we don't accept orders from them until production," said Chen. 

Chinese clothing company Souyute confirmed to the Global Times that its medical products subsidiary in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, is pushing for face mask export certification, without disclosing further details.

Those Chinese face mask producers are taking action to prepare for export business at a time when South Korea and Japan are on the brink of a rapid expansion of the coronavirus, the same virus that has ravaged large portions of China for the past month. 

Japan had reported 853 cases of coronavirus as of Tuesday afternoon, and South Korea reported 977 cases with 84 newly confirmed patients on Tuesday.

The worsening situation is pushing Japan and South Korea to ramp up production of medical products and increase imports. China, which is also battling the disease and received help from those two countries earlier, is of course an option.

Media reports have cited a Japanese government official as saying that Japan will resume importing face masks from China. 

Geng Shuang, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, said during a recent press conference that China is willing to provide support to Japan within its capacity.

Meanwhile, the South Korean government is restricting face mask exports to solve domestic supply shortage, according to the Yonhap News Agency. 

However, discussions have risen on China's social media platforms as to whether the country is capable of exporting face masks and other coronavirus-prevention materials, given that China is still in the middle of combating the coronavirus.

A representative from a Shanghai-based face mask producer told the Global Times that the company's export business has stopped under government requirements and now the company is working around the clock to produce masks. "We have not received permission from the government to restart overseas business yet," she told the Global Times.

Tian Yun, director of the China Society of Macroeconomics Research Center, said that China has been making all efforts to accelerate supply of epidemic prevention materials including masks.

Chinese companies have been going to all lengths to produce face masks and other disease-prevention products in the past month. Many companies, like auto-makers SAIC-GM-Wuling and BYD, also "crossed over" to produce face masks.  

"However, it's without doubt that those medical supplies have not been entirely adequate, particularly in certain regions of China. Hospitals, institutions and households all need to replenish inventories," Tian said.

Ou Xiaoli, a senior official with the National Development and Reform Commission, also said on Tuesday that China has not reached the stage where it can produce as many face masks as it wants. 

It is well-reasoned to further export or donate medical supplies to other countries after the epidemic is fairly well contained in China, which could also bring benefit to the current gloomy trade market, according to Tian.

(Zhang Dan contributed to the story)