London, UK: UK government actions to manage the coronavirus outbreak are likely to trigger an economic recession worse than that seen during the Great depression.
Manufacturing and services sectors in key geographical areas, including the UK, US and the eurozone, saw record falls in activity during March, according to Purchasing Managers’ Index data. The UK figure, dropped from 53 in February to 36 in March.
The data is published by IHS Markit and the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply.
“It’s increasingly difficult to find the words to describe the devastation as every region in the world fights to save human life as the first priority,” said Duncan Brock, group director, Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply.
“The likelihood of a global recession is now a given, though its duration and severity has yet to reveal itself.”
Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit, said: “The policy response to the economic damage from the virus has already been unprecedented, but the collapse in business expectations for the year ahead tells us that companies are expecting far worse to come.
