Corona virus threatens Apple's expected returns

Apple has warned that it could not meet expected returns due to the confusion caused by the Corona virus in China.

The technology giant said production and sales were affected by the virus, noting that there are temporary restrictions on the supply of iPhones worldwide.

Apple is the first major US company to say the virus will affect its finances.

The company, which was expecting record revenues of $ 67 billion in the current quarter, did not disclose the value of the expected decline.

"We do not expect to meet expected revenue for the quarter ending in March," said a statement from Apple.

With most stores in China closed and some doors open for only a few hours, Apple product sales will be low, she said.

"Although our iPhone manufacturing sites are outside Hubei province - and despite all these facilities being reopened - they are operating slower than we expected," she added.

"All of our stores in China and many of our partner stores are closed. The open stores were operating for very few hours with very low customer traffic. We are reopening our retail stores and we will continue to do so regularly and safely as possible," she noted.

Analysts have estimated that the virus could cut demand for smartphones by half in the first quarter of the year in China, which is the largest market for these devices in the world.

The auto industry has also been affected by the virus, as heavy equipment manufacturer JCB said last week it would cut production in the UK due to a lack of equipment from China.

The number of new infections outside the region from which the virus has started continuously has decreased in the past 13 days. 115 new cases were announced outside Hubei on Monday, compared to about 450 cases a week ago.

Despite the optimism that started to emerge with the slowdown in the spread of the virus and the resumption of work in some stores, Apple's warning confirms that the Chinese economy will be severely affected by the Corona virus.

The head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, expected a decrease of 0.1 to 0.2 percentage points in global growth, but she also stressed a great deal of doubts about the true economic impact of the virus.