Amazon is struggling to contain rampant price-gouging by sellers capitalising on the fear surrounding the spread of the coronavirus.
Hand sanitiser and respiratory masks were in some cases being sold on the site on Monday at a more than 2,000 per cent mark-up, compared to normal retail prices, despite Amazon saying it had removed “tens of thousands” of listings and was monitoring postings closely.
Among the many examples still available at the time of writing, a pack of 20 masks made by manufacturer 3M, but sold by an unauthorised reseller, was on sale at $387, compared to a normal retail price of around $14.99. A pack of 24 2oz bottles of Purell hand sanitiser, typically sold for less than $10 a box, was listed at $400.