This is particularly apparent in the U.S. Among Americans who say their country has responded poorly to COVID-19, 87% say the economy is bad, compared with half among those who say the response went well – a 37 percentage point difference. In Italy and Japan, this difference is less stark. In roughly half of the countries surveyed, a similar pattern exists when it comes to assessments of the future economic situation. For example, Belgians who negatively evaluate their country’s handling of COVID-19 are 23 points more likely than compatriots who approve of the government response to say their economy will worsen over the next 12 months.
