The COVID-19 epidemic has improved Chinese people’s crisis awareness, as 56 percent of respondents to a recently published poll plan to put more of their savings into prudent financial products.
Another 39 percent of respondents said they will increase their investment in financial products that offer a relatively stable income.
The opinion poll, themed “public anticipation of economic life after the pandemic,” launched by the Global Times polling ahead of the opening of the “two sessions,” had 1,568 respondents from 10 Chinese cities.
The coronavirus pandemic has forced people to decrease consumption. Most people surveyed said they will significantly reduce their overseas travel and consumption of luxury products for the rest of the year.
Li Daokui, a prominent economist at Tsinghua University and a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), told the Global Times that the coronavirus’ biggest impact has been on consumption, which is unlikely to recover before October.
Forty-two percent of the 195 new college graduates who responded said they have lowered their salary expectations as they seek a job.
Li said that ensuring employment is the focus of China’s efforts to stabilize people’s livelihood, including securing employment for the country’s 8.74 million new graduates.
Employment may bring some anxiety to society, but this can be solved by multiple means, such as using universities as a platform for college graduates to do some social service work in exchange for some remuneration, Li said.
The epidemic has also changed people’s thoughts and lifestyle. China was the top destination in a list of countries respondents wanted to travel after the epidemic, followed by Japan, Singapore and South Korea.
The US and Spain were near the bottom of the list, as the severity of the epidemic was a criterion for Chinese in choosing a travel destination.
Tourists are seen at the Happy Valley Wuhan theme park in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province, May 19, 2020. Happy Valley Wuhan, a theme park which had been closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, has partly reopened on Tuesday. Still, there is a limit on the number of visitors and online pre-booking is required. (Photo: China News service/Zhang Chang)
