PARIS - Layoffs, cutting costs and halting dividends: Companies are scrambling to adapt as the coronavirus emergency hits demand while the draconian measures taken to contain the illness undercut production.
Most European car makers, including Daimler, VW, BMW, Renault, Peugeot Citroen and Fiat Chrysler have shut down most if not all of their manufacturing lines.Scania, part of Volkswagen's Traton group, is halting most European truck production following disruptions in the supply chain.Airbus said it was suspending work at its French and Spanish plants for four days to improve workplace safety.
The iconic Saks Fifth Avenue flagship store in New York is closed, and Apple has shuttered all its stores outside China.The situation is especially catastrophic for the travel industry, with US hotel giant Marriott shutting down some of its properties and furloughing tens of thousands of workers. Low-cost airline Ryanair, which has announced"most if not all" of its flights from March 24 will be cancelled, said it is looking at a similar move, along with voluntary departures and temporarily suspending work contracts.
Air France-KLM, which is slashing as many as 90 per cent of flights, will reduce its planned investments for 2020 by 350 million euros and make 200 million euros in savings elsewhere as it seeks to ensure it has enough cash on hand.