Employees package facial masks at a medical equipment supplier in Qingzhou, East China's Shandong Province on Thursday. Many local manufacturers of anti-virus supplies have over recent days raced to finish orders for masks, gloves and disinfectants, playing their part in virus containment efforts. Photo: cnsphoto

Chinese suppliers of anti-coronavirus items including nucleic acid tests, masks and oxygen machines have seen export orders surge 25-200 percent amid new outbreaks in many parts of the world, ignited by growing concerns over Omicron variant.

Several industry insiders told the Global Times on Thursday that there's been a significant increase in export orders, mostly from Europe and Africa, since Omicron was reported to the World Health Organization by South African health authorities on November 24.

Weini Technology Development, based in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province, one of the nation's top 10 mask producers, has seen surging interest mostly from West European countries such as France and some African countries this week.

"Compared with last week, inquiries this week increased by 200 percent, mainly for highly effective models such as KN95," Cao Haoquan, president of the company, told the Global Times on Thursday.

"Our products are highly effective and have gained CE markings," Cao said, noting that some foreign clients asked if the masks could protect against the new Omicron strain.

Although an increase in orders was expected, the huge scale was a surprise. Masks are a common method of preventing disease, and the stage of major shortages has passed in many parts of the world, industry insiders say.

Cao's factory has daily production capacity of up to 1 million masks, which is adequate to meet demand, he said.

Export orders for other items such as nucleic acid tests and oxygen machines also increased in recent days.

A manager with a Shenzhen-based oxygen machine producer surnamed Deng told the Global Times on Thursday that inquiries were up 25 percent from last week, mostly from European countries, where the buying power is high.

Several makers of nucleic acid testing kits told the Global Times that their kits can detect Omicron, and they're ready to deliver the much-needed products abroad.

As major contributors to the world's pandemic prevention, Chinese vaccine producers are also ramping up their efforts since the new strain was reported.

China is rapidly advancing the development of vaccines targeting the Omicron variant, Zheng Zhongwei, Director of the Development Center for Medical Science and Technology of the National Health Commission and head of the national working group for vaccine development, said in a media interview on Thursday.