Earlier today (Jan. 30), Valu$ at Jurong Point was selling a box of 50 surgical masks for S$9.90.

And apparently, there was quite a queue that extended across several stores as well.

We also understand from a Mothership reader that there were at least three different brands of masks when she visited the outlet in the morning.

The various brands included these two:

Restock priced at S$19.90

However, we discovered that the masks have since increased in price when we visited the outlet at around 8:15pm today.

This is the box of masks available in the evening, priced at S$19.90 per box:

It is described to be a 3-ply surgical mask with 99 per cent bacterial filtration.

Speaking to Mothership, a customer who queued around 4pm managed to purchase the same box of masks for S$9.90.

In the evening, the store saw a large crowd of people snapping up the masks:

Mothership understands that the stock appeared to be sold out before 8:30pm.

Some of the customers Mothership spoke to were not aware that masks were being sold for S$9.90 per box earlier in the day.

Speaking to Valu$ staff at Jurong Point, Mothership understands that restocking typically occurs at least twice a day, "in the morning and in the afternoon", but did not specify if new stock for masks would be arriving.

We have reached out to Radha Exports, which manages Valu$, for comment and will update this article if they respond.

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Top image by Fasiha Nazren