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Waves of panic buying triggered by the rapid global spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) are a mass psychological phenomenon worth pondering. Irrespective of cultures and national borders, each stage of the epidemic’s escalation has quickly resulted in the affected population raiding shops. To be sure, some of the stockpiled items are directly associated with disease prevention, such as face masks and hand sanitiser. But there has also been a mad rush for general household staples, despite there being no indication of impending shortage.
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