The worldwide outbreak of the coronavirus has heightened American’s pessimism in their personal finance.
They are worried about unexpected medical expenses, displacement from work and the decline of stock portfolios, according to a survey by J.D. Power.
The coronavirus has infected nearly 100,000 people in at least 87 countries, leading to worldwide pessimism in global financial markets. This past week’s 11% dip in the S&P 500 was the worst week for American shares since the 2008 financial crisis. And U.S. stocks continue to fall for a second straight week.
The J.D. Power “Banking Industry Insight” survey of 1,198 U.S. adults, was conducted between February 28 and March 1. It revealed that two-thirds of Americans are worried that COVID-19 will negatively impact their financial situation. Forty-four percent are worried about how they will have to pay for unexpected medical expenses; 37% worry they might not be able to work as many hours or will be temporarily out of work; and 33% fear the value of their investment portfolio may decline.
Jim Miller, vice president of Banking and Credit Card Intelligence at J.D. Power, pointed out that any interruption or loss of income could have significant personal economic consequences for many Americans. Thirty-seven percent of respondents indicated that they have less than $1,000 in savings, excluding retirement accounts and home equity, and another 10% said they do not know how much money they have saved.
Moreover, the survey noted that half of all employed adults say they need to go into work in order to get paid and that an outbreak of the virus could jeopardize their income, while just 43% say they think they could live off their savings if they could not work for a month.
The survey also pointed out that consumers are considering changing their habits as a result of the coronavirus. Forty-four percent of adults indicated that they plan to travel less; 26% said they are stocking up on food; 25% are avoiding large public events; and 24% are planning to cut back on eating out at restaurants.
And as for tinkering with their portfolio, 45% of respondents said they are not planning to make any changes to their investment strategies as a result of the coronavirus, 13% indicated they are planning to move some investments into cash and 12% said they see the current market downturn as a buying opportunity.
Just under one-third of Americans (30%) said they do not have enough money invested in the market for it to matter one way or the other.
In terms of the longer-term implications of the coronavirus outbreak, more than half (52%) of Americans said they think the U.S. is either “somewhat” or “very” prepared to deal with the epidemic and 38% believe the U.S. is not prepared.