Macy’s Cuts Store Hours For The Rest Of The Month Amid Covid Cases Spike

The United States reported 1 million new Covid infections on Monday as the new highly contagious variant of the virus wreaks havoc.

Various studies have suggested that the Covid vaccine is less effective against the omicron variant.

The recent spike is also contributed to the holidays as Americans were more likely to have gathered with friends and family to celebrate. Lag in reporting data due to Christmas day and New Year's day celebrations is also seen to have contributed to the increase in reported Covid cases in the country.

Due to this, American department store chain, Macy's, announced that it will be cutting store hours in all of its locations for the remainder of January.

In a statement, a spokeswoman of Macy's told CNBC that they are and will continue to monitor the situation in the country and will follow the recommendations by the CDC as well as jurisdictional guidelines. Macy's spokeswoman also assured everyone they are keeping enhanced safety and wellness procedures in place.

Macy's store hours are reduced by two hours and all its locations will operate from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm from Monday to Thursday.

Meanwhile, Macy's store hours will remain unchanged from Friday through Sunday, meaning all its locations will be open from 10:00 am to 9:00 pm during the weekend of January.

On the other hand, aside from Macy's, many other retail chains around the United States are making strides in adapting to the latest wave of Covid infections.

In particular, Walmart has decided to shut down nearly 60 of its locations in the country in order to sanitize them. Such stores which were temporarily shut down by Walmart were located in Covid hotspots.

Electronics retailer Apple has also cut operating store hours in some of its locations. Apple has also limited the number of customers allowed inside the premises of its stores. Limited services are expected in Apple stores within the New York area.