The impact of the coronavirus is evident, Apple has to reluctantly close its retail stores in mainland China

The huge impact of the new coronavirus on global businesses has begun to emerge.

Yesterday, the US mobile phone giant Apple suddenly announced that it would close its retail stores, offices and call centers in mainland China from now until February 9. In the statement, Apple officials said that this was done after "extremely careful consideration and based on the latest advice from experts."

It must not have been an easy decision for Cook and Apple executives, who are far away on the other side of the ocean.

In recent years, despite the rapid development of local brands such as Huawei and Xiaomi, Apple still occupies the minds of Chinese consumers. In the past year, thanks to the huge consumer market, Apple sold 27.5 million iPhones in the Chinese market, and Apple's stock price rose by 86%, with an increase of more than 20% in the past three months alone!

For any giant, China's huge market of 1.4 billion people will never be easily abandoned. Even Nokia, which dominated the global mobile phone industry for 14 years, has always been committed to China, even though its market share has long fallen out of the top ten after it became outdated. How can Apple, which is at its peak, be willing to leave?

If Apple's setback in the Chinese market is a long-term concern about the Wuhan epidemic, then the immediate concern is what will happen to Apple's 5 million Chinese employees.

According to Apple's "Apple China Corporate Responsibility Report (2018-2019)": As of the end of 2018, Apple had 9 companies and 71 branches in mainland China, 51 retail stores in Greater China, and provided 5 million jobs to the society, including developers, supply chain and Apple China employees.

From the current perspective, this epidemic is no easier to deal with than SARS 17 years ago. If it becomes a protracted war lasting several months, these 5 million Apple employees in China will be the first to face unemployment! What is the concept of 5 million people? Before Wuhan was closed, 5 million people left. The permanent population of a prefecture-level city in Jiaxing, Zhejiang is 4.726 million.

This is an unimaginable number, but it is also the worst outcome. At least for now, we should remain optimistic. Apple is still the most popular smartphone brand. In the fourth quarter of 2019, Apple's global shipments reached an unprecedented 70.7 million units, completely crushing Samsung and Huawei.

In Apple's first quarter financial report for fiscal year 2020, net revenue was US$91.819 billion, a 9% increase from US$84.310 billion in the same period last year, setting a new record in the company's history.

The virus is short-lived, and good news about cured cases is coming every day from all over the world. Facing this epidemic, I believe Apple has enough strength to deal with it calmly.