Across Europe, new lockdowns plunge the economy

How many times can you put a business with your head under water before it sinks for good? While everywhere in Europe, more or less severe confinements are being imposed again, the question arises more and more sharply, when shops, theaters or restaurants are forced to close in the middle of the crucial period of the end of the year holidays.

London returns Wednesday December 16 to “Level 3”, meaning that stores “Non-essential” will close. For the third time this year, the six theaters of the Nimax group in the British capital, which had resumed performances with a limited audience, will therefore lower the curtain. The announcement of the restrictions, which fell on Monday December 14 at 3:30 p.m. for an application less than 36 hours later, particularly annoys Nica Burns, its director. « WE WILL BE BACK », she announces however, defiant and in capital letters. But the many temporary workers hired on musicals will spend the holidays jobless.

” Feel like crying “

” I want to cry “, confides for his part to Financial Times David Moore, the owner of Pied à Terre, a starred restaurant. He found himself Monday with 6,000 pounds (6,600 euros) of stocks to sell urgently. “Until now, I’ve always said we could survive, but with the loss of this week and the rent going on… I don’t know. ” Same causes, same consequences in Germany, where schools and most stores must close from Wednesday until January 10. “This will seal, irreparably, the bankruptcies of thousands of traders and put millions of people out of work”, reacted in a joint letter sent to Angela Merkel, the bosses of about thirty brands. In the Netherlands, five-week containment measures were also announced, with non-essential stores closing until January 19.

Not surprisingly, these measures will plunge economic statistics. Commerzbank expects gross domestic product to contract by at least 1% in the fourth quarter in Germany. Across the euro zone, according to the Nomura bank, the fall is expected to be 2.5%, and reach 3% in the United Kingdom.

At the time of confinements, these statistics measure the hardness and duration of the restrictions. But the real question is what will be the long-term damage caused by the lockdowns. How many businesses will close? How many people will lose their jobs? From this point of view, the data is mixed.

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