4 in 10 Pinoys expect economy to worsen — SWS

MANILA, Philippines — Four in 10 adult Filipinos expect the economy to worsen in the next 12 months, the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) mobile phone survey showed.

The poll, conducted from July 3 to 6, found 40 percent of Filipinos expecting the economy to worsen against 30 percent expecting it to improve.

This resulted in a net economic optimism score of -9, classified by the SWS as “mediocre.”

This was 47 points below the “very high” +38 in December 2019 and the lowest since the “low” –19 in February 2009, the pollster said.

Malacañang said it understands the negative outlook of the survey respondents but expressed confidence that things would get better when the economy is reopened.

“The only way to recover is to have livelihood and to reopen the economy. We understand why our countrymen are pessimistic but as economic managers said, ‘We have hit rock bottom and the only way to go is up’,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said at a press briefing yesterday.

“We are reopening the economy and we are preparing in case some people get sick precisely because we have returned to work. I think we are recovering. It will not be as bad, it can only be better,” he added.

Roque reminded the public that the coronavirus pandemic is not yet over so they should take care of themselves.

In the survey, 24 percent of adult Filipinos expect the economy to stay the same.

In the Visayas, the net economic optimism fell from the very high +33 in December 2019 to extremely low –30 in July 2020.

It dropped from excellent +44 in December 2019 to mediocre –7 in July 2020 in Mindanao.

In balance Luzon, it fell from very high +37 in December 2019 to mediocre –5 in July 2020.

In Metro Manila, it fell from very high +39 in December 2019 to mediocre –1 in July 2020.

Net economic optimism was lower among college graduates at low –12 and junior high school graduates at low –11, compared to elementary graduates at mediocre –5 and non-elementary graduates at mediocre +1.

Compared to December 2019, the net economic optimism dropped from a very high +32 among non-elementary graduates, very high +30 among high school graduates, high +28 among college graduates and high +25 among elementary graduates.

The SWS National Mobile Phone Survey used mobile phone and computer-assisted telephone interviewing of 1,555 adult Filipinos, 18 years old and above, nationwide. – Alexis Romero