Economics

U.S. Consumer Comfort Suffers Biggest Weekly Drop on Record

Workers install wood panels over windows of a Saks Fifth Avenue store in San Francisco, California.Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

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By Vince Golle

April 8, 2020 at 1:45 PM UTC

Updated on

April 8, 2020 at 2:02 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Consumer confidence in the U.S. suffered its biggest weekly decline on record as stay-at-home directives to help contain the coronavirus resulted in the sharpest-ever deteriorations in attitudes about the economy and buying climate.

The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index tumbled 6.4 points in the week ended April 4 to 49.9, the lowest since October 2017, according to data released Wednesday. In the past three weeks, the measure has plummeted more than 13 points, also the steepest drop in records back to 1985.