Lockdowns in 2021 Threaten to Slow First-Quarter Earnings Recovery

Lockdowns in 2021 Threaten to Slow First-Quarter Earnings Recovery
A price screen display above the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after the close of trading in New York on March 12, 2020. Brendan McDermid/Reuters
Reuters
Updated:

LONDON—A major chunk of the recovery in companies’ earnings expected in the first quarter is at risk of being pushed back further as lockdowns and mobility restrictions in several countries cloud hopes of a swifter economic recovery, investment banks said.

China announced lockdowns in four cities while European countries unveiled tighter and longer coronavirus restrictions on Jan. 13, denting back-to-normal hopes and sparking worries about further economic damage in 2021.