LONDON: Cinema chain Cineworld on Thursday said it fell into a big loss last year because its movie theatres were temporarily closed owing to the coronavirus pandemic. The group, with hundreds of cinemas mainly in the United States, slumped into a net loss of $2.65 billion (2.24 billion euros) after posting a profit after tax of $180 million in 2019.

“The Covid-19 global pandemic has significantly impacted the industry... with all sites across the group being temporarily closed from mid-March 2020,” Cineworld said in its earnings statement. Cineworld plans to reopen US venues from April 2. “At Cineworld, I never imagined a time that we would see the closure of our entire cinema estate, nor that varying restrictions would remain in place for so long as we continue to navigate our way through this crisis,” said Cineworld chief executive Mooky Greidinger.