(Yicai Global) Dec. 21 -- Scalpers in China are taking advantage of a surge in demand for fever medicines, as Covid-19 spreads quickly in the country following the easing of pandemic controls.

Motrin, a children's ibuprofen oral suspension, is being sold on the black market for CNY4,000 (USD573) a bottle, more than 100 times the normal price.

All kinds of Motrin have sold out on e-commerce platforms, and Tylenol, another fever medication, has also been fully bought up. Both drugs are also out of stock in many brick-and-mortar drugstores in cities including Wuhan in Hubei province and Guangzhou and Qingyuan in Guangdong province.

China announced the easing Covid-19 controls on Dec. 17, including big changes in the requirements for testing and cross-provincial travel. Due to panic-buying of fever drugs in many parts of the country, there was a short-term shortage of stock.

Scalpers usually target medicines that are in short supply or that are exclusively produced by certain firms, said Guo An, who runs a chain drugstore in Guangzhou. Some of them wait at the entrances to big hospitals and fever clinics, with partners dividing up into those who take payment and those who hand over the drugs.

“Scalpers can earn more than CNY2,000 per bottle,” Guo noted, adding that it is difficult for the authorities to investigate and crack down on them as they come and go quickly.

Guangzhou-based Honz Pharmaceutical, which makes medicines for children, said yesterday that the shortfall of fever drugs is expected to be alleviated within two months, and possibly even sooner with regulatory intervention.

Shanghai Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical has been producing Motrin and Tylenol at full capacity and is selling the drugs to China first in its Asia-Pacific supply chain network, its parent company has said, adding that the firm has been making efforts to lift capacity by improving its production facilities.

Johnson & Johnson China is also seeking help from its Asia-Pacific and global headquarters to see if it can further hike capacity, a company insider said, while adding that there are challenges in terms of labor and raw materials.

Editor: Tom Litting