People want the government to help them cover expenses in the current Covid-19 situation, according to the result of an opinion survey by Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, or Suan Dusit Poll.
The poll was conducted online between Aug 16-19 on 1,274 people throughout the country.
Asked to compare their expenditures before and during the pandemic, 40.22% said they were spending more to cover expenses; 33.60% said they were spending less; and 26.18% said it was about the same.
Regarding sources of income to cover expenses, with all respondents allowed to choose more than one answer, 83.57% cited both main and supplementary jobs; 46.78% said they had to dip into their savings; 44.34% cited subsidies from various government programmes; 26.26% used credit cards, cash cards and other financial services such as car-for-cash and house-for-cash; and 25.31% borrowed money from relatives and close associates.
Asked about their spending habits during the Covid-19 pandemic, 80.44% said they bought fewer luxury goods and adhered to a budget; 57.49% bought large quantities of goods at a time in case shortages developed; 56.47% bought goods at discounted prices during promotions; 53.71% ordered goods online; and 53.08% bought goods from shops running government welfare programmes such as RaoChana and co-payment.
Asked what the government should do to help them cover expenses, 86.41% wanted it to lower water, electricity, internet and fuel prices; 76.86% to lower the cost of living and control commodity prices; 71.64% to provide equal compensation to all; 61.85% to enact a debt moratorium and interest rate reduction; and 51.82% to make low-priced goods available in some areas.
Asked for how long they thought they would be able to survive in their current circumstances, 37.37% said three months; 30.32% three to six months; 19.68% six months to one year; and 12.63% one to two years.
