Sales of cold medicine at convenience stores shoot up

Over-the-counter medicines are displayed at a local convenience store in South Korea. (Yonhap)

Sales of over-the-counter medicines at convenience stores in South Korea have increased amid the latest resurgence of COVID-19 infections and outbreak of seasonal influenza.

Since November 2012, the government has allowed convenience stores to sell several kinds of over-the-counter medicine.

According to convenience store chain GS25, sales of cold medicines between Dec. 1 and 15 increased by 128.3 percent on-year. Sales of other over-the-counter medicines also went up 78.1 percent during the period.

Emart24, a convenience store chain under Korean retail giant Shinsegae, also said its sales of fever reducers during the two-week period have gone up 119 percent from a year earlier.

Another convenience store chain CU also reported that its sales of cold medicines and other over-the-counter medicines increased 48.1 percent and 60 percent, respectively.

A person who operates a convenience store in Seoul said sales of over-the-counter medicines have increased recently. The convenience store owner expected that people seemed to have purchased more medicines in case of emergencies.

Local convenience store chains are trying to secure enough over-the-counter medicine stock to meet the increasing demand.

"The company is trying to secure enough stock but is having trouble securing them," an Emart24 official said.

“I was told that local pharmaceutical companies are increasing their production of cold medicines. We will also try to secure as much of the medicines as we can,” an official from CU said.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety earlier this month issued an emergency production order to 18 pharmaceutical companies for 18 medicines used to treat colds and flu.

By Shim Woo-hyun(ws@heraldcorp.com)