How the coronavirus is already hurting global business

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New cases of coronavirus confirmed in the US 1:22

(CNN Business) - Major stores, restaurants and tourist destinations are closing their doors in China, as global companies begin to feel the effects of the deadly Wuhan virus outbreak.

Chinese authorities announced on Monday that the death toll from the coronavirus has increased to 80, with almost 2,800 confirmed cases in mainland China and several dozen more in countries such as the United States, Australia and Japan. With more than 57 million people in 15 cities in China under closure, the crisis is especially affecting retail, travel and tourism industries during the Lunar New Year high season.

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The companies say they are following the officials' signals, which means that the pain could last beyond the holiday season. Beijing has already extended the Lunar New Year holidays from January 30 to February 2 to try to prevent the spread of the virus. A government official told reporters on Monday that authorities are considering a new extension.

This is what some important companies are doing to try to contain the outbreak.

Starbucks announced over the weekend that it will close stores and suspend delivery services in the city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak and the wider province of Hubei. The coffee chain operates 90 stores in the central province of China, according to the company's website.

KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants are also closed in Wuhan City until further notice. The parent company Yum China says it will continue to assess the need for "additional actions."

McDonald's has closed restaurants in Wuhan and four other cities in Hubei.

Disney has closed its parks in Shanghai and Hong Kong, just as the resorts were preparing to announce what he called the "Year of the Mouse," a play about the Year of the Chinese Rat. Disney placed new decorations with Chinese New Year themes in all the parks, launched new products and introduced several dining options for the Lunar New Year.

The actions of luxury goods companies have been affected by low sales during what is usually a busy shopping season. Shares of LVMH, Kering and watchmaker Cartier Richemont fell more than 5% last week.

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Companies with a large presence in Wuhan are also preparing for the problems. Renault, one of several car manufacturers with a major manufacturing plant in the city, said last week that it was "carefully studying" the issue. Automotive factories, like other companies, were already closed for vacations.

Peugeot tweeted on Saturday that he will repatriate his expatriate staff and their families from "the Wuhan region."

"At the same time, the group and its Chinese partner are mobilizing to implement measures to care for the Chinese employees of their joint venture," he added.

The coronavirus outbreak occurs "probably at the worst time for China," said Jude Blanchette, director of studies for China at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. The Lunar New Year "is the largest economic event in China, where last year more than US $ 150 billion was spent during the period, so the economic implications could be significant," he told CNN last week.

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The period marks the largest annual human migration on Earth, during which hundreds of millions of Chinese travelers generally pile up on trains, buses and planes for family gatherings. The outbreak of coronavirus has led millions to rethink those plans.

The total number of trips made through China on Saturday, the first day of the Lunar New Year period, fell almost 30% over the previous year, Transportation Vice Minister Liu Xiaoming told reporters on Sunday. Air and train travel fell more than 41%, he added.

Major hotel chains, including IHG, Marriott and Accor, said they will waive cancellation fees until February 8 for hotel reservations in China and beyond.

Airline operators, including Cathay and Qantas, said they will offer full refunds for passengers traveling to and from China from January 24 until the end of February.

China's largest travel agency, Trip.com, also known as CTrip, said last week that it would offer customers free cancellations at all hotels, car rental services and tickets to tourist attractions in Wuhan until January 31 . New York week.

The Trip.com business "in the short term, will have problems," Jane Sun told CNN in an interview outside the Davos conference last week. But he anticipates that once the crisis ends, the business will recover thanks to the accumulated demand.

Trade problems occur when the pace of economic growth in China is reaching record lows and the country continues to suffer the effects of the trade war with the United States.

Wuhan's coronavirus outbreak is already stimulating people to entrench and avoid going out. That kind of behavior could hit the service sector, which now accounts for approximately 52% of the Chinese economy.

- Paul LaMonica, Cristina Alesci, Clare Sebastian, Richard Quest and Alexandra Lin contributed to this report.

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