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How would the economy bounce back and how would consumer behavior change from the COVID-19 pandemic?

The spread of the new coronavirus had plagued the world economy in 2020 and still remains the top concern of today, 2021. Despite to be most likely to have originated and begun spreading from Wuhan, China and across Asia, most southeastern Asian countries had relatively smaller numbers in infected cases and fatality rates compared to countries in Europe or North/South America.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) percentage changes of five ASEAN countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam) dropped to -3.4 in 2020, a sharp decline from +4.8 in the previous year. This plunge is similar to that of the Asian Financial Crisis in 1998, or for the countries of major advanced economy (G7), it can be compared with the global financial crisis (subprime mortgage crisis, triggered by the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers) around 2007-2010. Although, the 2020 pandemic is clearly different as it impacted the entire world significantly. From the expectations on the effort of rapid distribution of the vaccines, strong economic recovery is expected in 2021(+6.1).

Historical and estimates of GDP(constant prices) percent changes Historical and estimates of GDP(constant prices) percent changes
*Visualized by data from IMF World Economic Outlook Database (April 2021 Edition)

To see the effect of certain events, you would need some historical data to project the situation over that time. Although “surveys” are an excellent tool for gathering data, we can not retrieve it backdating in the past (Unfortunately, we do not have a conventional time machine yet), making the decision of running a study at that right time, on the right topic, very valuable.

In April 2020, after the World Health Organization had declared the situation as a global pandemic and while the outbreak continued to expand worldwide, Nikkei Research conducted a survey targeting 2,000 consumers across 7 Asian countries. Exploring the changes in lifestyle and minds of the consumers at this devastating unprecedented moment. The survey was carried out in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, and India.

The report is a bundle of three studies.
  1. Online survey to investigate the change in consumption behaviors due to COVID-19 pandemic.
    Conducted in April 2020, across 7 Asian countries (Singapore, the Philippines, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia)
  2. Interviews for comparing money-related consumption behaviors and awareness among social class categories. Conducted in November-December 2019, in Bangkok(Thailand) and Jakarta(Indonesia),
  3. Online survey measuring the money-related consumption behaviors. Conducted in December 2019, across 5 ASEAN countries (Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines)

Table of Contents
■Column: Coronavirus crisis – A blow to the Middle Class
 Keep a close watch on consumption behaviors
  • Surge in the arrival of Japanese Retailers
  • Changing lifestyle–New services anticipated
  • Some disparity in Recovery Speed Expected
■Research: Change in Consumption Behaviors due to COVID-19
 Urgent Survey Targeting 2,000 People in 7 Asian Countries
  • Lifestyle change due to COVID-19 and shift to online shopping
  • Holding off on Large-item Purchases
■Research: Consumer Behavior and Opinion on Money
  • Who is the Breadwinner?
  • How Prevalent is Cashless Payment?
  • How Do They Invest Their Money?
  • Why Save Money? How Much Are They Saving?
  • What are Loans for?
  • Research Outline
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