Apple temporarily closes all stores in China amid Coronavirus outbreak

Apple are closing all its stores in China for now
AP
Bronwen Weatherby1 February 2020

Apple is temporarily closing its 42 stores in mainland China, one of its largest markets, as Coronavirus spreads rapidly.

The iPhone maker said in a statement it was closing stores, corporate offices and contact centres in China until February 9, "out of an abundance of caution and based on the latest advice from leading health experts" it said.

"Our thoughts are with the people most immediately affected by the coronavirus and with those working around the clock to study and contain it," the statement said.

The announcement comes as the death toll there rose to 259 on Saturday.

The rising death toll has forced many western companies to close stores
Getty Images

Apple's online store will remain open.

China is the company's third biggest market in terms of sales behind the United States and Europe and it is also where most iPhones and other devices are made. CEO Tim Cook told analysts on Tuesday that uncertainty due to the outbreak was keeping the Cupertino, California-based company from offering more specific guidance about its financial performance in the coming months after announcing results for the holiday shopping season that were far better than investors anticipated.

That performance propelled Apple's stock price to new highs earlier this week, but the escalating uncertainty about the situation in China quickly dampened spirits. Apple shares dropped 4% Friday to finish at $309.51

Cook also said the company's contractors in China have been forced to delay reopening factories that closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

Cook said the company was looking for ways to minimize supply disruptions. Some of its suppliers are in Hubei, the Chinese province at the center of the outbreak that's been under lockdown for more than a week.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in