A survey has showed that the Maltese believe that it will take up to 12 months for the local economy to recover from the Coronavirus pandemic.

Audit, tax and advisory firm Grant Thornton Malta, has published the results of a survey aimed at measuring changes in the pattern of spending of Maltese households during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study, which was conducted between Monday 13 April and Friday 24 April on a sample of 517 respondents, focused on three main economic areas: general consumption, travel, and real estate.

According to the survey, 84% of the respondents expect the local economy to recover within 12 months or less. Groceries and communication services are the items which registered the highest increase in expenditure. At the same time, the purchasing of retail clothing and footwear decreased drastically, mainly due to the lockdown measures imposed by the health authorities.

The closing of shops has caused a significant shift towards online purchasing. 45% of the respondents avoided visiting communication outlets, thus buying services online. Around 25% shifted all their expenditure on restaurants, take-aways, education, electronic and recreational goods online.

Although the travel sector has been heavily affected by the pandemic, 52% of the respondents intend to travel as frequently as they did before once airports and ports re-open.

The property market has also been impacted by the emergency, with 41% of property holders noticing a large decline of interest in their properties, 19% a slight decline, and 37% no change at all. Of those property holders who, at the time of the survey, had properties occupied by tenants, 54% reduced rates or waived the rent payment. In comparison, 46% did not reduce the rent rates.

The full report can be accessed here