The third report on the impact of Covid on the economy, both during and after the pandemic, has its finger firmly on the pulse of the people. People are far more trusting now that the majority of the population is vaccinated, so much so that they have increased their outdoor activity and spending power but it is also clear that Covid will leave its mark on the lives we live in after the pandemic.
Other factors that emerge are that tourism has not yet recovered, while fewer people are still using public transport compared to pre-pandemic trends.
The report shows that the strong vaccination roll-out has significantly contributed to strengthening consumer confidence. The report prepared by the office of economist Dr Joseph Muscat, together with Dr. Vincent Marmara’s Sagalytics, shows that restaurants and cafes are returning to their pre-Covid client-base. During this period of recovery, the domestic tourism market and in-store sales are also continuing to strengthen.
The same cannot be said for the travel industry and the use of public transport, where the impact of the pandemic has been felt, so much so that consumption is projected to remain low in these areas. By way of conclusion , Dr Muscat and Dr Marmarà saying that incentives should be increased to encourage more people to use public transport to limit traffic congestion and air pollution.
The report shows that local consumption has picked up with the issuance of vouchers, showing that this scheme is strong in terms of short-term economic stimulus. The report also concludes that the majority of people believe that the Government should not continue to give the wage supplement once the entire population is vaccinated. The report also examines people’s sentiment and the impact of the vaccine, and it turns out that less than half of those surveyed believe that life will return to what it was before the pandemic.
Age is also a determining factor when it comes to survey replies – with 70 per cent of young people who believe that life will return to normal as it was before the pandemic once everyone is vaccinated and the least optimistic are those between -36 and 45 years old, where four out of ten believe that life will not return to normal after everyone is vaccinated.
The report also shows that two-thirds of the population believe that after everyone is vaccinated wearing masks should not be compulsory with more men than women determined not to wear it.
Another aspect which has become commonplace thanks to the pandemic is online shopping. Shopping for groceries, essentials and take-away food has began to be done online since the start of the pandemic due to restrictions, and according to the survey shows that this trend of online shopping will remain with us even now that anti-Covid measures have been reduced.
Source: TVM
