Majority of Australian businesses expect hit from coronavirus: ABS

[SYDNEY] A vast majority of Australian businesses expect to be hit by coronavirus-related restrictions with a fall in demand the most common impact experienced so far, the country's statistics office said on Thursday.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released the results of its first survey on business impacts of Covid-19 as part of its effort to gauge the early economic hit from the pandemic.

Approximately half of the country's businesses surveyed, or 49 per cent, had experienced an adverse impact as a result of Covid-19 during the mid-March data collection period, while 86 per cent expect to be hit in future months, the ABS said.

REUTERS