Workers arrange protective suits at a workshop in a company in Ningjin County, north China's Hebei Province, Feb. 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Xiao)
After satisfying domestic medical supply demand, China has continued to enhance its production capacity to meet huge and increasing demand for medical supplies from other countries.
Since March 19, China has provided over 1,700 invasive ventilators to aid foreign countries in the battle against the coronavirus, equal to half of its 2020 domestic supply, according to Xu Kemin, an official at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).
"China has 21 companies manufacturing invasive ventilators and eight have gained CE certification, accounting for one-fifth of the global invasive ventilator capacity. So far, 20,000 invasive ventilators have been booked by other countries," Xu told media. "Chinese companies have been working nonstop overtime to support global pandemic prevention and control work."
Xu said that meeting all overseas demand for ventilators is not a realistic outcome as some key parts providers are abroad and mass production is not easy under the current circumstances.
More than 80 percent of China's active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturers have resumed production, according to Xin Guobin, vice minister of MIIT. For example, 4.9 tons of hydroxychloroquine produced by Chongqing Kangle Pharmaceutical Co were exported within just five days.
He noted that logistics obstacles are a significant issue for China's API exports. Air and sea shipping services around the world have been disrupted, but China will enhance its production capacity based on the global market's API needs.
The country's protective suit production, which grew more than 40 times within two months, shows China's strong production capacity.
Xin said the daily deliverable volume of infrared temperature sensors has soared from 15,000 to 20,000 in China.
As of Saturday, 98.6 percent of industrial enterprises above designated size have resumed production, with 89.9 percent of workers returned to their jobs, Xin noted.
He said that 76 percent of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have recovered operations, with 1 percent daily growth through March.
