Shoppers in Taiwan placed 35,000 orders for surgical masks in two hours after they became available to buy online on March 12, a government spokeswoman said.

The new system aims to provide fair distribution of the surgical masks and will reduce long lines at drug stores.

Amid fears of supply shortages due to the spread of Covid-19, the Taiwanese government banned surgical mask exports in January and on Feb 6 implemented a rationing system of two masks per person per week.

Starting March 5, each person covered by Taiwan's national health insurance is allowed to purchase three masks a week at a unit price of five New Taiwan dollars (71sen), whether in-store or online.

Residents placing orders online are allowed to pick up their masks two weeks later at more than 10,000 stores nationwide.

The government and private sector worked together to set up 60 new surgical mask production lines to meet local demand.

The average daily domestic production reached 10 million this week, according to the Taiwanese government's executive branch.

 - dpa