New Zealand business confidence plummeted to a near record low in March over fears of the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, an ANZ Bank survey showed on Tuesday.
The survey's headline measure showed a net 63.5% of respondents expected the economy to deteriorate over the year ahead, compared with a 19.4% pessimism level in the poll last month.
Some 26.7% of respondents expected weaker activity for their own business, the lowest reading since the survey began in 1988.
“We’re on a very steep slide indeed,” said ANZ Chief Economist Sharon Zollner said in a statement, adding that it was unlikely the bottom has been hit yet.
(Reporting by Praveen Menon; editing by Kim Coghill)
