Proctor & Gamble China announced on Friday that it will suspend the sale of its cosmetic brand SK-II in China until the final results of government quality checks are released.

A consumer scare has enveloped the country in recent days after SK-II, a skin whitening product manufactured in Japan, was found to contain traces of the metallic chemicals chromium and neodymium.

Chromium can cause eczema while neodymium irritates the skin and can damage the lungs and liver if inhaled.

Earlier in the week, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine warned that China would ban imports of SK-II products if any further contamination was discovered.

(Xinhua News Agency September 22, 2006)