By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) stock traded 4.7% lower in premarket Monday after the company said the latest outbreak of COVID-19 in parts of China had “significantly impacted” its operations.
According to a company update today, same-store sales in the first two weeks of March fell 20% year-on-year and are “still trending down in recent days”.
The situation has worsened in March after same-store sales for January and February were already down 4% year-on-year. The company expects its current-quarter operating profit to be in the range of $165 million-$200 million. It was $342 million in the first quarter of the last financial year.
The company pointed out that the number of stores temporarily shut or offering only takeaway and delivery services had more than doubled since January.
Several cities in China including the economically important regions of Guangdong, Shanghai, Shandong, and Jilin are under lockdown as the country battles the worst outbreak of the pandemic in 2 years.
Daily cases have hit a two-year high. Quarter-to-date case counts for 2022 have surpassed that of full-year 2021, the company said.