Foxconn has announced that it will quarantine returning workers for up to two weeks, and it has cut its revenue growth guidance for the quarter, all due to the Coronavirus outbreak’s effect on iPhone production.
Workers returning from outside Henan province will be sequestered and not allowed to work for 14 days. Those returning workers that live near the factory will still be isolated for seven days, following the facilities’ reopening on February 10.
Foxconn, in a Wednesday morning statement to Bloomberg, cut its revenue growth guidance from a previously announced sales increase of between 3% and 5% on the year, down to a 1% to 3% increase.
If there are any further delays, they could potentially delay a much-expected March event from Apple, where it is expected to unveil a new “iPhone SE 2” and a new iPad Pro lineup.
The Coronavirus is expected to affect Apple’s sales no matter what, due to its continuing impact on the Apple manufacturing lines of Foxconn and other suppliers.
Apple industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo estimates Apple’s iPhone shipments could be disrupted, reducing overall shipments as much as 10% this quarter.
Apple closed all of its retail stores in China, as well as its offices in the country at the start of February, in what it called “an abundance of caution.”
As of today, there are nearly 25,000 cases of Coronavirus around the globe, causing close to 500 deaths. The World Health Organization has declared the Wuhan Coronavirus outbreak a global public health emergency. For more information about the virus, visit the WHO website.
