Adidas and Puma Chinese sales hit by coronavirus outbreak

Sportswear retailer Adidas has warned sales in its first quarter of its financial year would decrease as much as €1bn (£870) in Greater China, amid the recent impact of the coronavirus.

Adidas reported sales would be down by about €100m (£88m) in Japan and South Korea, which will result in a loss of €400m-€500m (£352m-£440m)in operating profit.

The retailer also revealed that it makes around a third of its sales in Asia.

CEO Kasper Rorsted said: “Following the outbreak of the coronavirus, our business in Greater China has experienced a significant negative impact since Chinese New Year. As the situation keeps evolving, we cannot yet reliably quantify the magnitude of the overall financial impact in 2020.”

Meanwhile, rival sportswear company Puma also issued a profit warning and said it was COVID-19 also “negatively impacted” the business since the beginning of February both in terms of sales and souring.

Puma added that its sales have been “severely affected”, due to temporary closures last month due to “restrictions imposed by local authorities.”

It said: “Given the duration of the situation in China, the negative impact in other Asian countries and now also the spread to Europe and the US, we unfortunately have to conclude that a short-term normalisation will not occur.”