Surveys and timely data from late-February onwards show that the economy is in the midst of a deep downturn. Cinema sales, restaurant reservations and the Economy Watchers Survey all point towards consumer spending having collapsed at the end of last month. Meanwhile, there was an unprecedented fall in railway passenger numbers in the densely-populated Tokaido corridor between Tokyo and Osaka in early March, which points to a dramatic shift in working patterns and economic activity. The economic situation is likely to deteriorate further in the near term as more people decide to stay at home and as demand from Japan’s trading partners plunges.
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