Evacuated Americans deplane from chartered flight from Chinese epicenter of coronavirus outbreak
More than 200 Americans from Wuhan, China arrive in Riverside, California; William La Jeunesse reports.
McDonald's has shut down several hundred of its restaurants in China amid concerns related to coronavirus, which has claimed the lives of more than 130 people and infected thousands of others globally.
The closing of its locations in Hubei, the Chinese province at the epicenter of the outbreak, adds the fast-food giant to the growing list of companies taking measures amid the virus scare. The company last week said it had closed select locations in Wuhan, Hubei's provincial capital, in hopes of preventing the virus' spread.
Chris Kempczinski, McDonald's president and CEO, said Wednesday that 3,000 of its restaurants remain open in China, including some that are feeding health care workers for free, The Guardian reported. He said China accounts for 4 to 5 percent of the company's revenue.
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“Its actual impact on our business is going to be fairly small assuming it stays contained to China," Kempczinski said during a conference call with analysts. "Right now, as you would expect, our priority's really on our employees, on our customers, doing everything we can to make sure that they are safe and taken care of."
Starbucks has also temporarily closed all shops in Wuhan through Feb. 2.
"We are working closely with local health authorities, taking actions with the health of partners and customers top of mind, including closing stores in some locations," a representative for the coffee chain told Business Insider.
Tech giants Google and Apple are also proceeding with caution. Google said it will keep closed its 10 offices in mainland China and Taiwan for the foreseeable future. Apple said its production will be impacted.
The announcement came as McDonald's said it had surpassed $100 billion in annual sales for the first time and reported strong fourth-quarter results. The company plans to open 450 new locations in China.
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Chinese officials have rushed to contain the spread of the virus through massive lockdowns of whole cities and the building of hospitals to treat and evaluate patients. As of Tuesday, the coronavirus claimed the lives of 132 people and infected more than 6,000 worldwide.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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