LONDON, April 6 (Reuters) - British consumer confidence has
recorded its biggest fall in more than 45 years, a survey showed
on Monday, as a widening shutdown of the economy to slow the
spread of the coronavirus hammered households' financial hopes.
GfK, which has conducted monthly surveys of British consumer
sentiment since 1974, ran an extra poll in late March which
showed the weakest sentiment since February 2009.
The drop in the index to -34 from -9 in its regular survey
for March, conducted earlier in the month, was the biggest on
record.
"Our COVID-19 'flash report' shows a dramatic result with
consumer confidence falling off the cliff in the last two weeks
of March," GfK client strategy director Joe Staton said.
Surveys of businesses have been similarly bleak. IHS
Markit's monthly purchasing managers' index for the services and
manufacturing sectors, published on Friday, pointed to the
sharpest contraction on record.
The biggest decline in the GfK survey came in households'
willingness to make major purchases, despite a spike in demand
for freezers, televisions and home office equipment as people
prepared to spend most of their time at home.
GfK conducted the European Union-commissioned survey of
2,000 people between March 16 and March 27. Over this period
Britain moved from advising people to avoid bars and restaurants
to banning them from leaving their homes except to buy food,
exercise or do essential work.
Economists fear Britain's economy, like many others around
the world, is heading for a severe recession but say a
bounce-back is possible later in the year, depending on how the
coronavirus outbreak develops.
(Reporting by David Milliken)