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Financial distress and COVID-19: evidence from working individuals in India
Qualitative Research in Financial Markets ; 2021.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-1294898
ABSTRACT

Purpose:

This study aims to explore the impact of the containment measures during COVID-19 on individuals’ finances, financial resilience during such distress and identifying the most financially vulnerable among them. Tracing such impact during the pandemic has been challenging due to a lack of representative data. This paper addresses this gap in the present study. Design/methodology/

approach:

A survey has been conducted using a structured questionnaire containing various items that portray the impact on income, spending, saving, investment, borrowing, insurance and retirement. The sample consists of 699 respondents and purposive and snowball sampling has been used for data collection. The results are presented and analyzed using infographics and frequency distributions. This study conducts an analysis of variance and Chi-square tests for significance.

Findings:

This paper finds a fall in income and limited ability to cope with the current economic conditions. The survey highlights inadequate savings and insurance, weak retirement planning, outstanding loans and under-diversified investments inhibiting financial resilience even among the higher-income group. Particularly, lower-income strata, women and not much educated are most financially vulnerable. Further, no substantial financial benefits have been received from the government and people rely on their usual income sources. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that measures the pandemic’s impact on personal finances, especially in connection with a developing economy like India. Policy interventions are critical to the millions for whom financial literacy is required now more than ever. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Full text: Available Collection: Databases of international organizations Database: Scopus Language: English Journal: Qualitative Research in Financial Markets Year: 2021 Document Type: Article

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Full text: Available Collection: Databases of international organizations Database: Scopus Language: English Journal: Qualitative Research in Financial Markets Year: 2021 Document Type: Article