Price hike major concern emerging from Covid-19

Survey shows two-thirds consumers feel prices of essential items have risen notably

Increasing prices of essential daily items is a major concern arising from the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent economic crisis in Pakistan, said the Pakistan Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) of Dun and Bradstreet Pakistan and Gallup Pakistan.

According to findings of the survey, employment remained the most impacted area in the wake of Covid-19.

Around four out of five consumers felt that the unemployment rate rose by a considerable margin in the past six months while three out of five consumers feared that joblessness would rise further or jump significantly over the next six months.

On the other hand, only the overall household financial situation measure did not show a decline and remained neutral by recording the highest score among all CCI parameters.

Survey results showed that around two out of three respondents, ie 64%, felt that their household savings had reduced in the past six months, however, 56% expected them to improve or remain the same in the next six months. Nearly two out of three consumers reported that prices of essential daily items rose notably.

It is pertinent to mention that in the February survey, 50% of respondents had expected the situation to get better or remain the same, said Dun and Bradstreet Country Manager Nauman Lakhani. This indicates relatively higher optimism of future in the August survey.

He pointed out that the hike in prices of essential daily-use products was a major concern. This parameter has the lowest net indicator score of 29 in contrast to all other parameters in the survey, he said.

“Pakistanis are generally optimistic people and the current CCI report reflects the same,” said Gallup Pakistan Executive Director Bilal Ijaz Gilani while commenting on findings of the report.

“Despite the difficulties borne on account of Covid-19 outbreak in the country in the past six months, a large proportion of consumers remain hopeful that economic conditions will improve in coming days.”

The official was of the view that recent economic indicators including figures of exports, remittances and inflation pointed towards short-term economic stability with a 4-5% rise in GDP growth in the next two years.

“If there is anything that the global Covid-19 pandemic has taught the world, it is that projections are mere expectations and, in an inter-connected world, there are hardly any constants,” he said. “Reports like the Dun and Bradstreet and Gallup Pakistan CCI provide an early warning barometer during such turbulent times and can help decision-makers navigate the rather unstable business environment in the country.”

According to him, the most troubling fact for consumers was the uptrend in prices of daily essentials.

On the whole, consumers all across Pakistan are relatively more optimistic and upbeat for the economic situation to improve than they were six months earlier.

Gilani added that across demographics, current sentiment was low as expected due to the impact of Covid-19, however, with the rapid decline in cases since mid-June, “consumers are less pessimistic about the short-term outlook for the next six months”.

“In particular, we noticed that optimism is high amongst females and urban respondents,” the official said.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 23^rd, 2020.

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