Penneys has been forced to close stores accounting for nearly a third of its sales, as European governments shut down high streets to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Owner Associated British Foods (AB Foods) said the budget retailer's stores in France, Spain and Austria were expected to make sales of £190m (€208m) over the next four weeks. "We are managing the business appropriately but do not expect to significantly mitigate the effect of the contribution lost from these sales," AB Foods said. "As a result, supply shortages from that country are now expected to be minimal," AB Foods said in a statement. "Each of our businesses are closely monitoring the current and potential effects of the outbreak on their operations."

Source: Irish Independent March 16, 2020 09:33 UTC