“The coronavirus outbreak continues to permeate through every aspect of our lives, and American consumer confidence is considerably shaken by its effect. April marks the single largest confidence drop in the almost two decades of the PCSI,” reports Chris Jackson of Ipsos. “Consumers are still bracing themselves for the worst of the storm, and while their current financial situation remains somewhat unchanged; there is increased experience with job loss which further concerns about job security and the ability to invest in the future.”
Jharonne Martis, Director of Consumer Research at Refinitiv, said, “Analysts polled by Refinitiv are also bearish on retailers and have been lowering their earnings estimates for the current quarter. The estimated growth rate for the Refinitiv Retail and Restaurant Index for Q1 2020 is expected to drop considerably to a 17.7% from an 8.9% in the previous quarter. Over 6 million Americans have now filed for unemployment, causing those employed to fear about their own job security and holdback on non essential spending.”
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