Wall Street has spoken: The coronavirus outbreak will have a major impact on capitalism. Company profits will suffer because humans may stop leaving the house. Companies have started to announce closures and cancellations.
There might be shortage of low-calorie products like Diet Coke. In a filing to shareholders, Coca-Cola wrote “We may see tighter supplies of some of these ingredients should production [of sugar alternatives] or export operations in China deteriorate.”
Following shutdowns of Disneyland Shanghai and Hong Kong, Disney announced on Thursday the closure of Tokyo Disney Resort. They’ll assess the coronavirus outbreak in two weeks and determine how long to keep the park closed. Also, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered the closure of all schools in the month of March. (The Hollywood Reporter)
The K-Pop boy band BTSis so fearful of catching coronavirus that they won’t return home to South Korean on their world tour. BTS canceled four massive concert dates at the Jamsil Olympic Stadium in April. (The Hollywood Reporter)
Facebook believes the coronavirus risk will extend into May. The company scrubbed their annual developers’ conference the scheduled for May 5th and 6th. More than 5,000 attended last year’s event. The director of platform partnerships at Facebook, Konstantinos Papamiltiadis, wrote,(quote) “Given the growing concerns around COVID-19, we’ve made the difficult decision to cancel the in-person component. We need to prioritize the health and safety of our developer partners, employees and everyone who helps put [the conference] on.” (Variety)
Because of an explosion of infections in Italy, AMC Theaters shuttered half the theaters in the country. (Deadline Hollywood)
A comprehensive list of sports and entertainment events that won't occur due to the coronavirus outbreak. (The Wrap)