![\"pre\"](\"https:\/\/www.statssa.gov.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/pre.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThe proportion of businesses who expected their workforce size to decline dropped from 46% to 27% between the 2nd<\/sup> and 3rd<\/sup> surveys.<\/p>\n There was also an increase in the level of confidence as reported by the respondents. Under Level 5 lockdown, 14% were confident that their businesses have the financial resources to continue operating through the pandemic, increasing to 36% under Level 4.<\/p>\n During Level 5, 7% of firms indicated that they could survive for longer than three months without any turnover, edging up to 13% under Level 4.<\/p>\n Although this is cause for some cautious optimism, other indicators show that economic conditions are still tough. When asked about turnover, 90% of firms reported turnover below their normal range under Level 5. This edged only slightly lower to 84% under Level 4.<\/p>\n The struggle for turnover reflects the extent to which firms are reaching out for help. Under Level 5, 30% of firms indicated that they were planning to take advantage of government relief schemes. This increased to almost 40% under Level 4, possibly the result of businesses beginning to assess the full impact of the lockdown.<\/p>\n The Level 4 survey was the third round of Stats SA\u2019s COVID-19 business impact survey, covering the period 1 May to 31 May. The first two rounds were conducted during Level 5, with the first round covering the period 30 March to 13 April1<\/sup> and the second taking place from 14 April to 30 April.2<\/sup><\/p>\n The third round solicited responses from 1\u00a0079 businesses. This was lower than the number of responses in the second round (2\u00a0182) but higher than the first round\u2019s tally of 707.<\/p>\n When interpreting the results from all three rounds, readers should keep in mind that the results reflect the perceptions of a limited number of respondents.<\/p>\n The strength of the data is that it provides a quick snapshot and valuable economic insight \u2013 in close to real-time \u2013 into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the South African formal business sector.<\/p>\n Download the complete report for the third round here<\/a>.<\/p>\n 1 <\/sup>The complete report for the first round is available for download here<\/a>. A summary article covering the results is available here<\/a>.<\/p>\n 2 <\/sup>The complete report for the second round is available for download here<\/a>. A summary article covering the results is available here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Similar articles are available on the Stats SA website and can be accessed here<\/a>.<\/p>\n For a monthly overview of economic indicators and infographics, catch the latest edition of the Stats Biz<\/em> newsletter here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" During the final two weeks of Level 5 lockdown, almost half of the businesses responding to our impact survey indicated that they had temporarily ceased trading. During Level 4, this fell to one-fifth, according to a follow-up survey. Other indicators from the Level 4 survey show a similar pattern as the economy returns to full read more »<\/a><\/p>\n