Warning of higher condom prices goes viral in China, stokes stockpiling talk

A warning of higher condom prices by the world's top maker has gone viral in China with the hashtag "condom prices rising" garnering more than 60 million views by Thursday on Chinese social media and stoking talk of stockpiling.

The Iran crisis has impacted facets of everyday life for people around the world and many Chinese took to social media platform Weibo - China's equivalent of X - to bemoan the fact it was now even invading the bedroom.

The wave of online comments was sparked by the boss of condom maker Karex Bhd KARE.KL, Goh Miah Kiat, who said the Malaysian company planned to raise prices by 20%-30% and possibly more if supply chain disruptions due to the Iran war drag on.

Many online comments said higher prices would not deter them from buying condoms to protect against pregnancy. Others urged buyers to stockpile.

"A few dozen yuan for a condom is a hundred times more cost-effective than raising a child at a million yuan," said one user.

"From now on, not only will we have to be frugal, but we'll also have to stock up on condoms in advance," said another.

The online conversations erupted in the past 24 hours and come as Chinese authorities are trying a range of policy measures to boost the country's flagging birth rate, which has been falling for decades, to offset an ageing population. Last year, births hit a record low.

Karex produces over 5 billion condoms annually and is a supplier ​to leading brands such as Durex and Trojan.

A price rise for condoms would add to the already increasing cost of family planning in China.

At the start of the year, China removed a three-decade-old tax exemption on contraceptive drugs and devices. Condoms and contraceptive pills are subject to a value-added tax of 13%, the standard rate for most consumer goods.

Condom companies Reckitt, LifeStyles, Ansell, and Renfu, which sell in China, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

-Reporting by Farah Master in Hong Kong, Liz Lee in Beijing and Andrew Silver in Shanghai; Editing by Neil Fullick/Reuters