Ebola, flu season boost US demand for Clorox wipes

New York

CLOROX Co's sales of disinfectant wipes jumped 20 per cent last month, when Ebola fears and the onset of flu season prompted Americans to stock up on cleaning supplies.

While it's hard to say how much Ebola fuelled demand, the year-over-year gain helped get the wipes into more households, company executives said in an interview at Bloomberg's headquarters in New York. About half of US homes currently use Clorox wipes, compared with about 60 per cent for liquid bleach.