Panic buying severely disrupts the usual consumption rates and the government’s stockpiling efforts, said Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing on Monday (6 April), following incidents of panic-buying at supermarkets and grocery stores over the weekend. Chan was answering Member of Parliament Cheng Li Hui’s question on the current measures that Singapore has in place to ensure adequate national stockpiles. Noting that the COVID-19 pandemic has “severely diminished global production capacities and disrupted global supply chains”, Chan pointed out that movement restrictions in some countries have “considerably diminished global air cargo capacity and connectivity”, which has in turn impacted the availability of goods and timeliness of transportation via air and sea.