Outlook for the general economic situation for the next 12 months, the indicator increased 6 points, from 107 in May 2021 to 113 in July 2021.
The confidence of Panamanian consumers in reviving the country's economy, suffering from the pandemic, recorded a slight decline, according to a measurement presented Wednesday.
The Panamanian Consumer Confidence Index (ICCP) shows in this sense that the measurement of July 2021 reached 104 points, an integer below the previous one, (May 2021), when it marked 105 points, 5 units above that of March.
Domingo Barrios, manager of The Marketing Group , a company that carried out the study in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture (
CCIAP), commented that the indicator shows a "slight decrease" in consumer confidence due to the economic reactivation.
In turn, Manuel Ferreira, director of Economic and Analytical Affairs of the
CCIAP, stressed that "the recovery of domestic consumption is a factor that would support the reactivation of the economy", so, he said, it is important to "strengthen the confidence of the consumers".
Consumers' expectations about the probability of saving money, according to the results of the survey, decreased by 4 points, presenting a result of 89 points, still below the equilibrium point, thus remaining at levels of mistrust.
The perception of unemployment marks an index of 96 percentage points, decreasing 7 points when compared to the measurement of May 2021, demonstrating a drop in confidence levels despite the announcements of reactivation of work contracts suspended as a result of the pandemic .
Thus, 26% of those interviewed said they did not know what will happen to their jobs in 6 months, 31% consider that it is unlikely that they will have a job in 6 months, 6% think that they will not have a job, while 37% they are optimistic about the future of their jobs.
Due to the crisis derived from the pandemic, the unemployment rate rose from 7.1% to 18.5% and informality from 44.9% to 52.8%, according to official data as of September 2020, the only ones available.
Consumers' expectations about the economic situation of their homes had a slight increase in confidence, going from 117 percentage points in May 2021 to 118 points in July 2021.
Regarding the prospects for the general economic situation for the next 12 months, the indicator increased 6 points, from 107 in May 2021 to 113 units in July 2021.
Panama's gross domestic product (GDP) fell 17.9% in 2020 and 8.5% in the first quarter of 2021. International organizations and rating agencies predict an economic expansion of between 8% and 12% for this year.
Panama, which accumulates 443,718 cases and 6,918 deaths, has advanced in a gradual and sustained opening of economic activities, after two pandemic waves that forced the closure of the non-essential commercial movement.