U.S. consumer sentiment dropped to near a 3-1/2-year low in March as the coronavirus epidemic upended life for Americans, and consumer spending was sluggish in February, strengthening economists' expectations of a deep recession.
WASHINGTON - U.S. consumer sentiment dropped to near a 3-1/2-year low in March as the coronavirus epidemic upended life for Americans, and consumer spending was sluggish in February, strengthening economists’ expectations of a deep recession.
“People are struggling to understand the magnitude and duration of the economic shock from COVID-19,” said Chris Low, chief economist at FHN Financial in New York. “Job losses are the most vivid demonstration of the new reality. As the reality sinks in, confidence is likely to fall into the mid-50s by May.”
“Stabilizing confidence at its month’s-end level will be difficult given surging unemployment and falling household incomes,” Richard Curtin, chief economist for the Surveys of Consumers. “The extent of additional declines in April will depend on the success in curtailing the spread of the virus and how quickly households receive funds to relieve their financial hardships.”
“Social distancing measures taken in response to the fast-spreading coronavirus along with extreme financial market volatility will take a severe toll on the main engine of economic growth,” said Lydia Boussour, a senior U.S. economist at Oxford Economics in New York.
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