Despite COVID-19 Spread, Mask Resellers Blinded by Profit Gains

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-gi] Amid the shortage of masks caused by the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), many people reselling masks at inflated prices through secondhand transactions are causing public disapproval.

As of the 28th of last month, Wellkips, a leading manufacturer of masks for fine dust protection, is selling masks at the same prices as before the COVID-19 outbreak. Wellkips is selling a box containing 25 KF94 masks for 22,000 KRW. The company posted a notice stating that neither the consumer price nor the wholesale price to retailers has been raised before or after the COVID-19 outbreak, warning consumers not to be harmed by some unscrupulous businesses engaging in hoarding.

The problem lies with some consumers who purchase masks in bulk from the market and resell them at higher prices on online secondhand trading cafes such as Junggonara. On the 27th, a single mask that originally cost 880 KRW was being sold for 2,200 KRW on Junggonara. There have also been cases where secondhand prices surged after COVID-19. The 'Friday KF94 Protective Mask' sold by Plan Zero was traded for only 20,000 KRW for 129 masks on Junggonara on the 12th of last month, before the large-scale spread. Currently, posts are appearing trying to sell the same product, 30 masks for 90,000 KRW. In the past, many posts were for masks that had not been fully used, but recently, more posts are selling unopened masks.

On Junggonara alone, over 1,200 posts seeking to trade masks secondhand were uploaded in a single day on the 27th. This is about four times the number compared to the 19th, when large-scale confirmed cases began to be announced. This increase seems to be due to the government's announcement that masks will be stably supplied through official sales channels such as post offices, Nonghyup, pharmacies, and Hanaro Mart, leading to expectations that prices will plummet, prompting more mask sale posts. According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, it is possible to report selling health masks at prices higher than the previous price, but this applies only if the price is increased by more than five times. For the time being, secondhand mask transactions at high prices are expected to continue until mask supply stabilizes.

As the number of consumers buying masks at inflated prices increases, crimes exploiting this situation have also occurred. In Ulsan, a man in his 30s was arrested by the police after posting on an online secondhand trading site that he was selling KF masks in bulk at low prices, then defrauding eight victims of a total of over 110 million KRW. The damage per person ranged from as little as 6 million KRW to as much as over 70 million KRW.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.