South Africa, March 26 -- As the world grapples with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and African countries such as South Africa and Kenya announce their country-specific responses to the outbreak, Nielsen has found that global consumers are adapting their purchase behaviour to cope with this rapidly evolving situation.

This insight stems from the identification of six key consumer behaviour threshold levels that tie directly to concerns around the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak. These thresholds offer signals of spending patterns, particularly for emergency pantry items and health supplies with these patterns being mirrored across multiple markets.

Nielsen's Global Intelligence leader Scott McKenzie says the spending pattern...