India’s COVID-19 anxiety score highest in world: Report

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Indian consumers are the most worried people across the world on the uncertainties that lie ahead due to the coronavirus lockdown, Business Line reported quoting a survey conducted by Deloitte on May 16.

During the survey, respondents aged above 18 years were asked if they felt more anxious than last week.

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India ranked highest in this global anxiety index, with a score of 33. The next in line was Mexico at 17, followed by Spain at 14 – both scores remarkably less than India’s.

During a previous survey conducted on May 3, India’s score was 57. This means the anxiety level of Indians has since reduced.

Notably, India has been occupying the top spot since the first survey was conducted in April. In the meantime, countries like Japan and Italy, which topped the charts in the first half of May, moved down several spots on the index.

Commenting on the results, Anil Talreja, Partner, Consumer Industry, Deloitte India, said: “The survey gives a pulse of consumer behaviour and trends during these challenging times. It gives a reflection of heightened consumer apprehensions, which are at the core of their decision-making. This, in turn, will also steer consumer product companies to build their new strategies around sales and marketing. Building value for brands virtually is going to be another task that companies would need to focus on in future.”

The first such survey was undertaken on April 13 across 13 countries. The target was to reach out to 1,000 respondents in each nation, who would represent the entire population.