Panic salt buyer finds he can't sell or transport his bulk purchase

Wuhan - A man in Central China who purchased 6.5 tons of salt during the period of frantic buying of the iodized stuff a week ago now finds himself in something of a pickle.

The man, surnamed Guo, bought the salt in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, out of fear that the material would soon be out of stock for a long time, when the rumor was spreading that iodized salt could help stop radiation poisoning.

But, once the government had laid the rumor to rest, the man found himself in a quandary: it was almost impossible to move the stuff to his hometown Lanzhou, in Gansu province, a long way from Wuhan, and returning it seemed equally impossible.