By Maria Martinez 
 

The German consumption barometer of the trade association HDE plunged to its lowest level since the start of the surveys in October 2016 in its largest monthly decline ever recorded due to the spread of the coronavirus.

The HDE consumption barometer fell to 96.66 for April from 99.91 for March, showing a pessimistic consumer mood in regard to the coming three months, the trade association says.

"Consumers are in crisis mode, the consumer mood is in the basement," the HDE said.

The HDE consumption barometer is published monthly and is based on a survey of 2,000 people about propensity to buy, propensity to save, financial situation and other factors relevant to consumption. It doesn't reflect current consumer behavior, but rather the expected mood in the next three months.

A significant decline in consumption in Germany is expected in the coming months, the HDE says, "the crisis has hit consumers."

According to the HDE, the marked deterioration in consumer sentiment suggests that even if the current protective measures against the spread of the virus are relaxed, it will take time to recover consumer consumption.

Not only consumer sentiment has deteriorated significantly, but also income and economic expectations, the HDE says.

Furthermore, more than a third of all employees surveyed are now worried about their jobs. Many companies have closed or are stopping production, more and more employees are already on short-time work or will be in the coming weeks, and the number of unemployed is increasing, the HDE says.

"The corona pandemic has triggered an overall economic crisis," the trade association says.

Write to Maria Martinez at maria.martinez@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 06, 2020 04:32 ET (08:32 GMT)

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