CONSUMERS are expecting the 2020 mid-term fiscal policy review to increase the income-tax-free thresholds and stabilise prices for basic goods and services.

The Covid-19 pandemic has impacted on the terms of spending patterns, with government reallocating resources in order to provide safety nets for vulnerable communities.

With the 2020 mid-term budget review being set for presentation by the minister of finance and economic development, Professor Mthuli Ncube on Thursday, consumers are anticipating treasury will introduce measures to restore buying confidence, price stability and improve disposable incomes.

“Ndozvatamirira kuti tione kuti zvinofamba sei kuitira kuti economy ienderere mberi, mari ngaitenge zvakasiyana siyana,” (we are waiting to see if any measures will be put in place to ensure money retains its buying power) said a consumer.

Some consumers are also expecting reforms to create business-friendly systems that can result in certainty on pricing models.

Clarity regarding currency transactions and exemptions of tax structures is also under the spotlight ahead of the mid-term budget review.

The mid-term fiscal policy review will be presented at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has had its effects in terms of the government’s set economic targets. There are also possibilities that the government will review expenditure estimates, revenue inflows, and economic outlook, among others.

Furthermore, it is being presented when the government is focusing on restoring food security as well as ensuring that most firms get relief packages.

With inflation having eroded most of the macro-economic fundamentals, analysts await to sees how the government will focus on restoring productivity.

However, the key highlight is the current foreign exchange auction system in which the treasury is also being anticipated to provide an impetus as to how it can stabilise overall economic systems.

Generally, consumers being the most heavily hit by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, fiscal authorities are left with nothing apart from relief packages.