For the first time in almost a year, all U.S. retail stores of Apple Inc. they are open.
This milestone, along with weekend news that Warren Buffett BRK.B’s Berkshire Hathaway,
remains bullish on its 5.4% stake in technology giant, Apple sent to AAPL,
jumping more than 5% on Monday, its biggest increase in more than four months.
Apple closed all its stores outside of China on March 13, 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world. Its stores in China had closed that February.
But as of Monday, Apple’s 270 stores in the U.S. were open to some extent, though some still have restrictions, such as by appointment only. Texas stores were the last to open Monday, following additional delays caused by the parallel February winter storm.
9to5 Mac was the first to report on the openings. He also said that the only Apple stores that remain closed worldwide are about a dozen in France and Brazil.
Some U.S. stores had reopened as of last May, but many were forced to close again as the pandemic worsened and local restrictions became more severe. Reopened stores are seen as a bit bad in local business conditions and are an encouraging sign of economic recovery as COVID-19 vaccines are more widely distributed and cases are falling across the country.
Shares of Apple rose more than 5% on Monday, their best result since the 6.4% gain on October 12th. Shares of Apple have fallen 3.7% so far, but have risen 71% in the past 12 months, compared to the Dow Jones industrial average. DJIA,
gains of 3% this year and 18% over last year.