This Week: Consumer confidence, Q1 GDP, Amazon earns

The Conference Board issues its April snapshot of U.S. consumer confidence Tuesday

A look at some of the key business events and economic indicators upcoming this week:

Lost confidence

The Conference Board issues its U.S. consumer confidence index for April Tuesday.

March’s reading tumbled to 120, its lowest level in nearly three years, as the economic fallout from the coronavirus spread, triggering a steep skid in global stock markets and fueling worries about the damage the outbreak could cause. Economists expect that April’s consumer confidence reading plunged to 85. A reading below 90 reflects an economy that is contracting.

Consumer confidence, by month:

Nov. 126.8

Dec. 128.2

Jan. 130.4

Feb. 132.6

March 120.0

April (est.) 85.0

Source: FactSet

ROUTE TO RECESSION?

The Commerce Department delivers its preliminary estimate of first-quarter economic growth Wednesday.

Economists project that the U.S. economy contracted at a 4% seasonally adjusted annual rate in the first three month of this year. That would be down from a moderate 2.1% gain in the fourth quarter of last year. Many economists believe the country will endure a sharp contraction from business shutdowns put in place to fight the coronavirus.

GDP, seasonally adjusted annual rate, by quarter:

Q4 2018: 1.1

Q1 2019: 3.1

Q2 2019: 2.0

Q3 2019: 2.1

Q4 2019: 2.1

Q1 2020 (est.): -4.0

Source: FactSet

CORONAVIRUS WINDFALL

Wall Street expects that Amazon.com got a big boost from all the online shopping consumers are doing due to the coronavirus.

Analysts predict the e-commerce giant’s revenue surged more than 20% in the first quarter from a year earlier. Even so, Amazon is expected to report Thursday that its earnings declined in the same period. Amazon has spent heavily to ramp up capacity to meet soaring demand from consumers avoiding stores to minimize exposure to the virus.