HONG KONG — China’s pleasure product exports have increased by 50% during the worldwide COVID-19 public health crisis, according to industry reports shared by Shanghai and Hong Kong media last week.
Although according to Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post (SCMP), China’s economy, including its manufacturing outlook and exports, “crashed at the start of the year at the height of the [COVID] outbreak,” the overall economy has “staged a mild recovery since, and the sex toy industry seems to have been able to enjoy a more rapid recovery since the enforced closures and lockdowns.”
The SCMP notes that several Shandong-based manufacturers reported hefty increases in both exports and domestic sales.
Overseas sales manager Violet Du said Shandong-based Libo Technology has increased its production line staff by around 25% since they returned to work at the end of February.
“Our production lines are running around the clock, and our workers are working in two shifts to meet the surging demand,” Du said.
France, the U.S. and Italy, according to the report, have been the most active export markets for Chinese pleasure product manufacturers over the last four months.
Du ascribed the surge in demand to “lockdown measures” in the U.S. and Europe.
According to Shanghai-based The Paper, China’s sex toy exports have increased by 50% so far this year, with exports of sex doll products doubling.
“Sex doll exports to Italy have increased fivefold since March, when confirmed coronavirus cases began to emerge,” reported the SCMP.
To read "China’s Sex Toy Makers in Growth Spurt, as Coronavirus Lockdowns Fuel Global Appetite," visit the SCMP website.
