China boosts medical supply production

China is ramping up production of medical supplies to combat the outbreak of novel coronavirus, the country's top industry regulator said on Sunday.

The production of protective suits has reached 20,000 per day, said Huang Libin, a spokesman for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, adding the ministry has urged more companies to start production soon and expanded international cooperation by purchasing more supplies from abroad.

The shortage of medical supplies, including N95 masks and goggles, was reported in Wuhan, Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak.

According to Huang, as of Saturday night domestic medical suppliers have sent 136,000 protective suits, 134,000 N95 masks and 188,000 pairs of goggles.

Cao Xuejun, deputy director of the consumer products industry department of MIIT, said about 60 percent of mask manufacturers have restored production, with 10 million made per day, while the production of N95 masks for medical protective purposes reached 600,000 each day.