Crackdown on antipyretic drugs, COVID-19 items as demand surges
Market watchdog officials check the prices of drugs at a local pharmacy in Shanghai.
Shanghai's market regulators have stepped up crackdown on irregularities like price gouging, hoarding and price fraud pertaining to antipyretic medicines and COVID-19 preventive items amid a run on local pharmacies and online platforms, officials announced on Wednesday night.
The crackdown mainly targets antipyretic medicines, antigen detection reagents and masks, according to the Shanghai Administration for Market Regulation.
Retail stores and markets of relevant medicines have been ordered to abide by regulations and not to disrupt the market's normal price order, the administration said.
Actions such as fabricating and spreading price hike information, bundled sales and unreasonable hiking of prices will be severely punished, it warned.
Between December 8 and 14, inspections were held on 2,146 retail drugstores and supermarkets in the city, with more than 3,000 reminder notices issued.
The frequency of inspections has been increased, with e-commerce business platforms ordered to check and rectify the operations of businesses on them.
Residents are urged to tip off authorities on pricing irregularities by dialing 12315, the hotline of China's market watchdog, or the city's service hotline 12345.
An official inspects a local pharmacy.
