Consumers in Germany affected by coronavirus

Confidence among consumers in Germany will start May at an all-time low, according to a monthly barometer published Thursday, as the coronavirus pandemic leaves its mark on Europe’s top economy.

The forward-looking monthly index from pollsters GfK plunged almost 26 points to -23.4, based on a survey of around 2,000 people in the first two weeks of April.

“At this point, consumers were feeling the full extent of measures to control the virus’ spread for the first time, such as school and business closures, halts to production and restrictions on going outside,” GfK said in a statement.

Looking to individual components of the index, people’s expectations for the wider economy fell to their lowest level since the financial crisis in 2009.

Respondents’ outlook for their personal income and readiness to make purchases also plunged.

“Along with blows to income that have already happened, fear of job losses have grown sharply among many workers,” creating “a significant barrier to consumption,” GfK said.

But since early April, Berlin has agreed with Germany’s 16 federal states on the first steps in a slow exit from lockdown, including opening smaller shops and allowing some students to return to school.

Health minister Jens Spahn last week highlighted that each infected person now passes the virus on to fewer than one other person. Such signs of hope prompted an unexpected resurgence of investor confidence back into positive territory in April, a monthly survey published on Tuesday showed.