YouKnowANot, May 2020 by Blackbox Reseach

every+one

May 2020

YouKnowAnot

Government Satisfaction Index

76 MAY

66 MAY

64 MAY

Community Satisfaction

Personal Finances

National Economy

86 MAY

74 APR

85 APR

Singapore’s Top 5 News Stories of the Month

The GSI remains strong for the Government. Year on year, cost of living, CPF and civil rights are all up 10 points while satisfaction on jobs has held up remarkably well despite the impact of COVID19.

% Who Followed the News Government Satisfaction

Change since last month

Change over last 12 months

1 Defence/ national security Crime levels Education system Racial relations/ integration The environment Public transport Health insurance/ protection Care for the Elderly Moral standards Management of the economy Government accountability Taxes CPF/pensions Civil rights/ liberties/ free speech Level of salaries and wages Jobs and unemployment Population management Housing affordability Motor vehicle prices/ COE Gap between rich and poor Cost of living

96%

-1%

95% 93% 93%

-1% -1% 0%

1% 4% 0%

93% 92% 92%

0% 1% 2%

2% 6% 7%

91% 91% 89%

1% 2% -1%

5% 6% 4%

86%

Overall GSI

85% 85% 84%

-2% 0% 4%

4% 10% 10%

81%

80% 79% 77% 76%

0% 1% 1% 0%

1% 6% 7% 7%

71%

70%

10%

86%

61 APR

64 APR

% Who Paid Close Attention

Circuit breaker continues while cases surge in worker dormitories 60%

Coronavirus in Asia: China declare zero new COVID-19 cases, while figures drop in South Korea and Hong Kong 33%

91%

Woman claims she’s “sovereign”, refuses to wear mask at Shunfu Mart, charged with offences including being public nuisance 31%

92%

Coronavirus in other parts of the world: COVID-19 cases decline in most European countries but they remain high in USA and Brazil 34%

96%

90%

Changi Airport T2 suspend operations for 18 months starting from May 1 26%

88%

Life After Lockdown, Part I Life After Lockdown, Part II COVID19: What Have We Learned During the Circuit Breaker Period

1/5

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May 2020

YouKnowAnot

Life After Lockdown Part I

With the Circuit Breaker ending on June 1, we asked Singaporeans to share which activities they are looking forward to doing the most when outside life resumes. First and foremost, we have missed hanging out with those we are closest to. The top activity to do, picked by 32% of Singaporeans, was seeing friends and loved ones. Just under one in four (24%) are looking forward to leaving the house to do things other than getting food or groceries the most and a similar proportion want to go back to work. Interestingly, the desire to return to workplace is most strongly expressed by professional Gen X (35-49 year-olds) males of higher income. Tired of home cooked meals? Younger Singaporeans (15-24 year-olds) are most looking forward to having a meal outside of home (24%) while Singaporeans living in medium-high income households are the most eager to satisfy their retail therapy urge at local malls rather than relying on e-commerce to pass the time (16%).

Top 5 activities Singaporeans most look forward to doing after Circuit Breaker Seeing friends or loved ones

32%

Getting out of the house

24%

Going back to work

24% 35-49 year-olds

Dining out

Interacting with people face to face

31%

19% 15-24 year-olds

COVID19: Upsides of Life at Home

Click to read

33%

High income households

24%

15%

2/5

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May 2020

YouKnowAnot

Life After Lockdown Part II

As more shops and businesses prepare to reopen, wallets and purses are a’ twitching – what do Singaporeans plan to splurge on after CB? Is there an appetite for spending? Our May YKA study finds that 39% of Singaporeans claim they have spent more during the CB than in the period before. Increased spending was more evident amongst medium income families who may have spent more on home delivery of groceries and food. Conversely, 43% of Singaporeans say they spent less during the CB than the period before. About one in four of 15-24-year-olds say they have reduced their spending by 50%, demonstrating how much of their disposable income was largely dedicated to lifestyle and leisure spending. Having been cooped up at home for some time, more than half (57%) of Singaporeans intend to increase their spending post-Circuit Breaker. Dining out (still restricted in Phase 1) is the top choice, especially amongst older women and Gen Zers. Women are also more likely to splash on personal grooming while Gen Zers are keen to get acquire new threads (clothing) and men are more likely to want to get their hands on the latest tech gadgets.

COVID19 and Employment: Singaporeans Fear the Worst

Click to read

Have you been spending more or less during Circuit Breaker? Spent more

43%

About the same

18%

Top 5 items Singaporeans plan to splurge on the most after Circuit Breaker 53%

Dining out 50 year-olds and above

62% 60% 58%

15-24 year-olds Women

Personal grooming (hair, spa, skin treatments, etc)

34% Women 50 year-olds and above

Travel

24%

Personal clothing and shoes

24% 15-24 year-olds

Tech stuff (gadgets, software, etc)

40% 39%

39%

17% Men

39%

Spent less

22%

All Singaporeans

3/5

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May 2020

YouKnowAnot

COVID19: What Have We Learned During the Circuit Breaker Period Here at Blackbox, we are dedicated to observing and measuring every aspect of current Singaporean perspectives whether it is a shift in attitudes or a change behaviour. With the start of the COVID19 crisis, we doubled down on our research efforts and since early April, we have been taking the pulse of the Singaporean community on a weekly basis. We are looking into every angle of Singaporeans’ COVID-19 experience - from people’s mood to public sentiments on governmental response to the crisis, as well as how individual Singaporeans are coping with the various restrictions imposed on them.

Scan to read our weekly community tracker

Here are three key things we have learned during this unprecedented period:

Negative emotions dominated as we tried to manage our lives through CB restrictions Uncertainty, frustration, anger, anxiety, fear, and sadness dominated the emotions of Singaporeans for the last two months. Younger Singaporeans, 15-24 year-olds, felt more anxious (45%) while middle-high income households say felt feel higher levels of frustration and anger (53%).

Top 3 emotions experienced during COVID19 Apr 6-7

13-16

Apr

20-27

28-30

Apr

May 4-8

12-16

18-22

27-31

May

49%

58%

48%

46%

49%

44%

52%

50%

45%

48%

47%

50%

45%

41%

42%

40%

51%

41%

38%

39%

41%

34%

36%

Is Singapore heading in the right direction?

Despite the impacts of COVID-19 on Singapore, we have seen little variation in the right track/wrong track sentiment among Singaporeans all year. This is a signal that Singaporeans continue to trust that the Government still has a firm grip on keeping the nation afloat and creating success for the nation in the future. However, while less than half of all Singaporeans felt 2020 was going to be worse economically for them than 2019 in the first part of the year, the numbers have risen and remain consistently above 50% since the beginning of the CB, even tipping over 60% at certain points in May.

The Government’s Handling of the COVID19 Crisis Has Held Up

May

Ave

Uncertain Frustrated/Angry Anxious

Singapore still on track but economic sentiment is very low

Despite widespread criticism over the escalation of COVID19 cases amongst foreign workers and the various mixed signals to the public on what people should do and not do, Singaporeans largely think that the Government has handled the crisis pretty well up until the end of May. Having said that, Government Performance metrics have ended up where it started in terms of public perceptions which suggests that while its hand was not weakened through the crisis, it was not strengthened either.

Apr

7-8

13-16

20-27

Apr

28-30

Apr

May 4-8

12-16

May

18-22

May

27-31

May

Right track

83%

80%

76%

82%

80%

84%

81%

84%

Better

17%

23%

19%

21%

23%

20%

22%

25%

Worse

64%

52%

54%

56%

52%

57%

54%

47%

Those who rated the Govt excellent on their COVID19 responses Apr

Apr 7-8

13-16

20-27

28-30

Apr

May 4-8

12-16

18-22

27-31

6-7

Apr

May

Ave

Keeping the public informed with accurate information about the virus

29%

24%

30%

34%

27%

33%

31%

29%

28%

Efforts to reduce public panic

24%

19%

24%

26%

22%

26%

28%

23%

25%

Efforts to reduce the spread of fake news and misinformation about the virus

24%

19%

25%

28%

20%

26%

23%

21%

24%

Putting in place action plans to reduce the risk of the virus spreading

24%

17%

24%

23%

20%

27%

25%

24%

27%

Minimizing the risk of people bringing the virus from another country

24%

17%

24%

23%

28%

27%

25%

23%

28%

4/5

every+one

May 2020

YouKnowAnot

Who We Are You Know Anot

Blackbox Research is a Singapore based data content specialist. We provide research and affiliated data and communications services for business, government and NGO clients across Asia.

YouKnowAnot is our monthly community survey platform that has been running since 2013. We interview a representative sample of 1,000 Singaporeans every month. We now use a geographically stratified online sample. Our methodology also applies quota controls to ensure representative demographic coverage of the population. If you would like to purchase customised questions for your organisation or want to dig into our historical general community data/demographic information, please contact comms@blackbox.com.sg for assistance.

Blackbox Research introduces Singapore’s first inspiration laboratory – the Chat Room. Primarily designed for focus group discussions, The Chat Room is a creative space that brings people together. The inviting and relaxed atmosphere allows companies and brands to connect with consumers in meaningful conversations. For more information, visit thechatroom.com.sg

(65) 6323 1351 enquiries@blackbox.com.sg www.blackbox.com.sg

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