Foxconn, one of the primary producers of iPhones for Apple (AAPL 0.64%), has said it anticipates returning to full production by the end of March, after having been shut down due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The spread of COVID-19 is threatening to delay the introduction of Apple's new low-cost iPhone, which some are calling either the "SE 2" or "iPhone 9."
The device was supposed to begin production last month, but workers at Foxconn and Pegatron, another Apple supplier, had their Lunar New Year vacations extended due to the disease's spread. Apple said it would be unable to meet the quarterly revenue guidance of $63 billion to $67 billion it had previously provided as a result.
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Minimal impact on Foxconn
Foxconn also issued a revenue warning, announcing it expected a 15% decline in consumer electronics and enterprise product revenue in the quarter. However, it did forecast revenue would recover after it resumed full production at the end of the month.
Even so, the impact of the outbreak means it will not see any revenue growth in the first half of 2020, and the full year will suffer a "mild downward revision" from its original guidance.
The iPhone supplier had begun bringing back workers to its factories at the end of February and now is reportedly staffed at 50% of its normal seasonal level. Foxconn Chairman Liu Young-Way told investors, "Prevention of outbreak, resumption of work, and production are our top priority."
Foxconn is the world's biggest contract manufacturer.
