“Due to current Covid-19 conditions in some of the communities we serve, we are temporarily closing stores in these areas. We take this step with an abundance of caution as we closely monitor the situation and we look forward to having our teams and customers back as soon as possible,” an Apple spokesperson said in a statement. In Arizona—which reported a daily record on Friday of 3,200 new cases—six Apple locations will be temporarily closed, the most of the four states where closures are taking place. Two locations will be closed in Florida, which also reported a new daily record of 3,822 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday morning. RELATED: For more up-to-date information, sign up for our daily newsletter. Two closures are planned for North Carolina and one store will be shutting its doors in South Carolina. North Carolina reported a record 871 coronavirus-related hospitalizations on Friday, while South Carolina state health officials announced 987 new cases of coronavirus on Thursday, bringing the statewide total up to 21,533 and breaking the state’s previous record for the largest single-day increase. Earlier this week, CNBC reported, Apple announced plans to re-open stores in New York City and said the company was aiming for more than 200 U.S. stores to be open by the end of the week, helping to spark a boost in the stock market. Soon after Friday’s news about the 11 closures, however, market gains began to drop. And for more ways the pandemic is impacting businesses, check out Customers Are Angry That These Beloved Stores Don’t Require Face Masks.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb
