Starbucks Says 85% of China Stores Now Open, Sees Virus Impact Waning

(Bloomberg) -- Starbucks Corp. is reopening cafes across China after the coronavirus outbreak forced widespread closures last month.

“With the number of new cases in China slowing, we are seeing the early signs of a recovery in the region. As a result, the situation is improving throughout major parts of China,” Chief Executive Officer Kevin Johnson said in a letter posted online Thursday. Starbucks now has opened 85% of its 4,292 China locations, he said.

Johnson predicted that more communities will recover and customers will be back out in stores “over time.”

The world’s biggest coffee chain, based in Seattle, has seen its supply chain disrupted and sales fall after the disease’s rapid spread forced businesses, malls and shopping locations to shutter across China.

The virus has spread beyond China’s borders, with rising cases being reported in Italy, South Korea, Iran and other nations.

To contact the reporter on this story: Leslie Patton in Chicago at lpatton5@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sally Bakewell at sbakewell1@bloomberg.net, Jonathan Roeder

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