China halts exports of suspected toxic toy beads

China's product safety watchdog halted the export of a toy suspected of containing toxic substances in the latest scandal plaguing the "made in China" brand, state press said on Saturday.
The export freeze comes after several children slipped into comas after ingesting the toy beads, prompting recalls of several million sets of "Aqua Dots" and "Bindeez" toys in the United States and Australia.
China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine also ordered late Friday an investigation into the manufacturing process at plants making the toys, the China News Service reported.
The export freeze is the latest in a string of suspect toys manufactured in China that have tainted the nation's production processes and struck fear in parents world-wide.
On Wednesday the US Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled 4.2 million units of "Aqua Dots" after two children slipped into comas after swallowing the toy distributed by Spin Master in Toronto, Canada.
"The coating on the beads that causes the beads to stick to each other when water is added contains a chemical that can turn toxic when many are ingested," the commission said in a statement. "Children who swallow the beads can become comatose, develop respiratory depression, or have seizures."
Also on Wednesday, Australian officials introduced a nation-wide ban on a similar kids' bead set found to release a substance akin to the date-rape drug GHB when swallowed. Three children were hospitalised after falling unconscious when they ingested the tiny beads on the toy, Bindeez, manufactured in China.
The US further recalled nearly 400,000 other toys, including toy cars, which were made in China and had surface paint containing excessive levels of lead. No injuries were reported among the lead paint recalls.
China's product safety watchdog did not immediately comment on the recalls of toys suspected of containing lead-based paints, but previously it has vowed to eradicate such products. China is the world's top toy exporter, selling 22 billion toys overseas last year, 60 percent of the globe's total.