After the Sept. 11 attacks on the US, production lines at Mary Hsieh's (
Taiwan's export-led economy has slumped at a record rate since its main market -- the US -- dipped into a long-expected recession which was deepened by the recent terrorist attacks.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Yet the deadly threat of anthrax and the US military's anti-terror campaign have given a few of Taiwan's niche operators the chance to buck the trend.
"Orders are coming in every day," said Hsieh, assistant general manager at Woei Cherng Advanced Technologies Co (偉誠先端科技).
"We have to work overtime to meet the massive amount of orders."
Still, the 18 staff members running the company's production lines have failed to satisfy the enormous demand for the light, portable gas mask -- about the size of a cigarette pack -- usually used by firefighters.
Following the terror attacks and reports of confirmed cases of anthrax in the US, fears of biological and chemical terrorist attacks have sparked a run on gas masks, antibiotics and other protective equipment.
Hsieh said orders for the gas masks have tripled to around 300,000 pieces, at a unit price of NT$1,500 (US$43), from the US, Canada, and Europe.
Gas masks and full body suits used to protect people from any chemical or biological attack, are in short supply in the US. So are some antibiotics that can be used to combat anthrax.
But many people are determined to get whatever protection they can.
"An overseas Chinese working at a post office in New York came to us during his stay in Taiwan and begged us to make 200 gas masks so he could take them back to the US," said Hsieh, who added that they did eventually make the masks for him.
Despite the economic gloom, some other Taiwan businesses are getting a boost from the fears gripping the US public.
China Chemical & Pharmaceutical Co (中國化學製藥), one of Taiwan's largest drugmakers, said sales of its antibiotics had more than doubled after the US anthrax scares.
The drugmaker, which produces and distributes the Cipro tablets for the domestic market only, said sales of its 500mg Ciflodal tablets swelled to a total of NT$1.2 million (US$34,783) per month from the previous NT$500,000 because many people bought the antibiotics and sent them to relatives in America.
The dramatic boom in sales caught investors' attention. Shares of China Chemical have risen 19 percent since the US attacks, while the main TAIEX stock index has lost more than one percent over the same period.
There have been 17 confirmed cases of anthrax in the US and four people have died of inhalation anthrax.
The US-led campaign against terrorism and military strikes in Afghanistan have also sparked a fever for military goods.
T-shirts printed with "No More Terrorism" and army uniforms are in fashion with young people while toy soldiers depicting the UK's Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment and the US' Navy Seals have become the hottest collection.
"After extensive reports on the US retaliation against terrorism by local media, many people, regardless of age, are attracted by the toy models of US and British military personnel and bought them for personal collections," said David Wong, a shopkeeper at a local military surplus store in downtown Taipei.
"Previously, those who bought military clothes were mostly male, but now there are more and more young girls coming to our shop and looking for fashionable military outfits," said the shopkeeper.
A female lawmaker running for election in the Dec. 1 legislative and mayoral elections has made camouflage her campaign trademark.
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