Changing financial behaviors due to COVID-19 worldwide

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the measures implemented by governments to slow down the outbreak forced people worldwide to change their financial behaviors. As the graph shows, many people were able to save more money, due to lockdowns and business closures. For instance, more than 30 percent of respondents in Hong Kong, France, Indonesia, China, and India said that they saved more money during 2020. On the other hand, some people needed to dip into their savings or even borrow more money to face the crisis. Specifically, more then 20 percent of respondents in Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, and India were forced to go into debt to overcome the difficult situation caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.