People have a lot of questions about the recent Coronavirus outbreak. How did it start? Should they panic? Is this going to cause problems for companies like Apple that rely on Chinese suppliers for most of their products? The answer to that last question, according to recent reports from Reuters (opens in new tab)and Bloomberg (opens in new tab), is maybe.
Several companies, including Foxconn and Samsung, were forced to close their factories because of the Coronavirus (opens in new tab) outbreak. Those closures are set to end on February 10, and Bloomberg reported Monday that Apple suppliers like Foxconn, Quanta Computer and LG Display plan to resume production that same day.
Reuters also reported on Monday that any further delays would start to affect the availability of Apple's products. An anonymous source told the outlet that Foxconn has been able to make up for its Chinese factory's closure by relying on its factories in Mexico, India and Vietnam, but those factories can't meet demand on their own.
Together these reports suggest that Apple's production should be fine as long as the Chinese government doesn't extend the restrictions on these factories past February 10. A single week--especially one that coincided with the celebration of the Chinese New Year--doesn't seem to be enough to cause problems for Apple's supply chain.
Unfortunately, it's not clear what the Chinese government's next move will be. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global health emergency in late January; it's not hard to imagine the pressure there is to be very cautious moving forward.
