The number of merchants accepting bankcards, POS machines and ATMs is 390,000, 610,000 and 80,000 respectively, which is 3.5 times, 3.9 times and 2.1 times as much as that of five years ago.
Since the pandemic’s outbreak, uncertainty has been curtailing consumption and investment, dampening productivity and potential growth. Monetary and fiscal policies have helped contain the negative impact of the crisis. Today the economic outlook seems to be improving at last, thanks also to the rollout of vaccines made possible by exceptional achievements and cooperation in the scientific research community.