Consumer Pulse Wave 3

The proportion of South Africans whose household income has been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic has been largely stable over the course of this study. Eighty-two percent of consumers stated they were impacted in week three, which was a slight increase compared to the prior week.

Among impacted consumers, job loss as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic has increased significantly since the survey started, with Millennials most affected.

More than a third of impacted consumers have canceled subscriptions or memberships and nearly a third have canceled or reduced digital services due to household budget constraints.

The amount that consumers expect to be short in the near future increased by 7%, or nearly R500, to ~R7,500 in week three.

There has been a significant increase in impacted consumers implementing payment holidays provided by loan providers since the survey started, indicating that consumer and lender communication has intensified.