Consumer Pulse Wave 6

Continued slightly lower levels of financial hardships experienced by consumers augmented by government relief and financial forbearance programs seems to be shifting consumer mindsets toward recovery and moving forward with life. The proportion of consumers saying they have been negatively affected by COVID-19 remained flat from the previous month, but still well below the April high of 63%. Perhaps a more telling metric is the percentage of respondents that say they don’t expect to be impacted. This metric reached its highest level since the start of the survey at 25%, indicating that those affected believe the worst may be over. 

However, approximately two-thirds of respondents remain concerned about their ability to pay bills and loans, and an increasing number of consumers are receiving some form of financial accommodation, such as a deferral or payment holiday (18%, up 3 points from the last survey).