
Whenever Veerachai Roopsuwanakul, a fruit seller in Bangkok, tries to buy an air purifier, he gets the same response: "out of stock.
"We never thought the air would get so bad," Veerachai said . " He now filters the dust with a mask.
"We can't find the purifier in the store or online.
"The Thai capital is struggling to cope with the second year of increased seasonal air pollution, which has prompted people to snap up so many filters and masks and supply is decreasing.
Residents are worried that there is still a long way to go to control toxic smog, which marks an increasing opportunity for purifier manufacturers such as sharp.
3 m Company or mask manufacturer
There are about 10 million people in the city.
"As you can see from our website and stores, our air purifiers are all sold out," said Yol Phokasub, president of the Central Group, which owns the top shopping mall developer in Thailand.
Other local retailers such as Berli Jucker Pcl and Home Product Center Pcl are also unable to keep up with demand.
Aswin Techajareonvikul, chief executive of Berli, said the company is looking for new suppliers of contaminated masks.
After a sharp drop in air quality last week, Thai authorities closed hundreds of schools.
Bangkok was once the fourth.
According to the index compiled by IQAir AirVisual, a startup monitoring company, smog is the most serious in major cities around the world.
Although the pollution problem is not as serious as New Delhi, the awareness of smog among Bangkok residents has spread rapidly this year.
More than 2 million people tracked Bangkok on IQAir AirVisual app, compared with about 80,000 people in the Indian capital Bangkok.
"Interest in Thailand has surged since around January.
Kelsey Dusika, marketing manager at the startup, said.
"Since then, Thailand has been the country that has generated the greatest interest in app use and air quality monitor sales.
Thailand's military government is stepping up regulation of the worst polluters, such as factories.
Smog is also blamed on weather patterns, vehicle smoke, construction dust, and the burning of garbage and crops.
"Manufacturers will be under pressure to do better in pollution," said Chayo Trangadisaikul, executive director of the Thai federation of industries . ".
"Companies that provide technology for environmental upgrades may see huge opportunities.
"While some businesses may benefit from the demand for products that fight smog, the entire metropolis is likely to be the biggest loser.
Bangkok is the most in the world-
Economic growth depends on tourism, but smog may deter tourists.
The Bank of Thailand said last week that tourism has not yet been affected, but if the problem continues, air pollution may have some impact. —
With the help of Natnicha Chuwiruch and Randy Tantong-