However, we have also seen a recent dip in visits to retail and leisure facilities in developed nations. Even so, these were still at their pre-pandemic levels in Germany, Belgium and Italy, and very close to normal in France, Spain, the US, Japan and the UK (chart 3).
Lastly, after a brief rally, the weekly proxy indicator for GDP relative to its level two years ago showed slight declines in the US, Germany and Italy, and a continued fall in the UK. Conversely, it continued to improve in Japan, bounced back in France after a short drop, and stabilised in Belgium (Chart 3). The OECD Tracker is based on Google Trends resulting from queries on consumption, the labour market, housing, industrial activity as well as uncertainty. The change over a two-year period (y/2y) is calculated to avoid the base effect that would arise from a comparison with 2020 data.
