The adverse effects of the Wuhan coronavirus have allegedly taken its toll on renowned business brands operating in China. The travel restrictions have caused significant losses in equity markets and left US companies such as McDonald's, KFC, and Starbucks, among others, to halt their operations in the country.
According to a recent report in TalkBusiness.net, Last Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down by 1.6 percent, the Standard & Poor's 500 by the same rate, and NASDAQ by 1.9 percent as well. The said drop of equity sales was blamed on the Wuhan coronavirus epidemic.
It was also revealed that renowned US companies such as Walmart Inc. and Tyson Foods halted their business operations in China. Other companies such as Pizza Hut, KFC, McDonald's, Starbucks, and Disney also followed suit. These entities were reported to close down their establishments in and around Wuhan.
As of Monday, there were 110 reported cases in 26 US states, revealed the US Center for Disease Control (CDC). It was then announced that only five out of the investigated patients tested positive of the Wuhan coronavirus while 73 others are still under investigation. The confirmed cases in the US are located in Washington, Illinois, California, and Arizona.
The CDC then declared the epidemic as a serious public health threat. It said that the virus has caused a major concern that the people are not allowed to travel to or leave Wuhan.
Thus, it concluded that if the pandemic cannot be contained and disrupt global commerce, the corporate earnings would also be adversely affected, said the president of Yardeni Research Ed Yardeni.
Molly Maj of Walmart International Corporate Affairs-Global Communications announced that Walmart is currently monitoring the developments or precautions caused by the Wuhan coronavirus.
She said that the company would comply with official recommendations and are, for the moment, reinforcing good hygiene practices in all of its branches in China that are still running including Sam's Club.
At present, Walmart has about 400 stores in China and 19 distribution stores in the country that engages customers in more than 170 Chinese cities. The company also employs about 100,000 people in China.
According to Business Insider, several US fast-food chains and retailers in Wuhan and around it have announced their temporary closures such as McDonald's and Starbucks. The announcement declared that the business decision was a precaution to prevent the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus among its employees and customers.
Several major tourist attractions such as Shanghai Disney Resort and InterContinental Hotels Group have also announced their respective temporary shutdowns. According to a Pizza Hut spokesperson, their outlets in Wuhan have been closed since January 24, 2020, and will remain closed 'until further notice.'
