A customer wearing a face mask leaves the Selfridges Oxford street store prior to the company's temporary closure of its UK branches, as the spread of the coronavirus disease continues, in London March 18, 2020. — Reuters pic
The figures also showed a sharp reversal in the housing market which, like much of retail and other sectors of the economy, has been largely shuttered by the government’s lockdown order that was announced on March 23. A survey published today confirmed British manufacturers suffered the biggest fall in output and orders for at least three decades in April.
Howard Archer, an economist with EY Item Club, a forecaster, said consumer confidence was taking a major hit from the coronavirus’s impact on the economy and everyday life, prompting many people to cut back on borrowing.