There's been a lot of reporting and discussion around the impact of the Coronavirus in the past few weeks. While we won't delve into the health ramifications of the disease, we will attempt to measure the effects it has on businesses worldwide.
Companies in several countries, most notably China, are enacting quarantines and other rules to manage the virus outbreak and keep as many people safe as possible. There were factory closures, workers sent home, and other measures taken to ensure this. Especially at Foxconn, the infamous place where all of our consumer goods are manufactured.
Including the iPhone.
Apple ($AAPL) is still reeling from stores and offices being closed down at the start of the month, but our data shows a different side to the story. In fact, Foxconn has resumed making the iPhone 11 again, and Apple has ramped up its hiring in China despite concerns about the Coronavirus.
From early September, aka the release date of the iPhone 11, to now, hiring in China has gone up 89%. Someone at Apple is clearly is not phased at the Coronavirus spreading, since the company keeps aggressively adding more job postings. It kind of makes the following quote read more interesting when you have the data telling us one thing and Apple saying another. Obviously, these jobs are for Apple at a corporate level, but still, the dichotomy makes you think...
“After thorough consultation with public health experts and government authorities, we are working toward re-opening our corporate offices and contact centers the week of February 10, and we are making preparations to reopen our retail stores.”
About the Data:
Thinknum tracks companies using the information they post online - jobs, social and web traffic, product sales and app ratings - and creates data sets that measure factors like hiring, revenue and foot traffic. Data sets may not be fully comprehensive (they only account for what is available on the web), but they can be used to gauge performance factors like staffing and sales.
