The Chinese government urged its citizens to stock up on essential products in case of emergency.
The announcement was made by the Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday, and although no specific reason was given, the call comes amid lockdowns due to coronavirus outbreaks and unusual heavy rains that have damaged crops and raised concerns about the supply of vegetables. .
The ministry also called on local authorities to keep supply chains running and prices stable.
Later, state media sought to calm things down amid reports that people were shopping out of panic.
"As soon as this news broke, all the elderly people close to me went crazy, shopping in a panic at the supermarket," wrote one user on the Chinese social networking site Weibo.
The Economic Daily, a newspaper controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, urged its readers not to be alarmed, saying the government's message was aimed at making sure homes were prepared in the event a lockdown was announced in their area.
The newspaper Diario del Pueblo said such notices are common, but that this year they had been made a little earlier due to problems that include an increase in the prices of vegetables, natural disasters and recent cases of covid-19.
Food prices traditionally rise in China as winter approaches, but the price of vegetables has skyrocketed in recent weeks due to extreme weather.
Meanwhile, the country continues to resort to strict lockdowns to deal with the coronavirus.
China hopes to reach zero infections before hosting the Winter Olympics, which begin in February 2022.
92 new cases of coronavirus were reported in China on Monday.
Shanghai Disneyland was closed for at least two days, after a tourist tested positive for COVID-19 after returning home.
