Expectations are high among the Syrian people about a further deterioration in the performance of the Syrian economy during the coming months amid frightening reports about economic losses in the country that has been hit by 30-month-long conflict.

A recent report issued by the Gulf Bayt.Com Business website and republished by Syrian websites said that Syria ranked last among the Arab states in terms of "Consumer Confidence Index," which highlights the confidence of consumers in the region relating to the economic performance and the labor market.

According to the report, Syria recorded 194.08 in the consumer confidence index for September, marking the worst performance in the index in the region.

In detail, 63 percent of the Syrians said their personal financial situation has remarkably deteriorated and is expected to become worse in the coming months.

In terms of economic performance, 84 percent of those surveyed said that the Syrian economy is deteriorating and getting worse compared to what it was six months ago, and while only three percent predicted an improvement in the economic performance in the future, four percent predicted that the economy will remain the same.

Finally, about 30 percent of the surveyed people considered that the labor market in Syria will get worse and will remain so for another year, while 20 percent of them expected it to improve, and 25 percent indicated that the labor market will remain the same a year from now.

Indicators about deteriorating economic conditions are obvious on the ground with many commercial shops and fancy restaurants closing their doors.

Syrian Minister of Tourism Bushr Yazigi announced that the total damage of the direct and indirect tourist income has amounted to about 330 billion Syrian pounds annually, an equivalent of 25 billion per month.

Quoted by Tishrin newspaper, the minister said that the direct damage is estimated at 165 billion pounds and includes the owners of hotels, restaurants, travel and tourism offices, and the indirect damage reached 135 billion pounds in the sectors of transportation, agriculture, industry and culture, a matter that would weaken the contribution of tourism in the gross domestic product.

Yazigi pointed out that more than 371 tourist hotels came out of the service with a capacity of 13,928 room because of the security situation, the difficulty of movement, acts of vandalism and looting, which backfired on employment, adding that the total number of unemployed people hit 258,000 people in the tourism sector.

The minister indicated that many important tourism projects have been brought to a standstill because of the crisis, including 300 projects for the private sector worth 90 billion pounds.

It is noteworthy that the former Minister of Tourism Hala Nasser has unveiled recently that the number of tourists dropped from 2.4 million in 2010 to reach about 40,000 tourists in 2013.

Moreover, a recent report issued by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) said that the GDP in Syria has dropped by about 31.4 percent in 2012, noting that the conflict in Syria has had enormous impact on the national economy.

The ESCWA report said that the Syrian economy needs years to regain the level it was in 2010, noting that the sanctions imposed by the European Union, the United States and the Arab League have caused a severe shortage in the foreign currency.

It said that the Syrian economy has lost a great deal of export earnings and is facing financial difficulties that weaken its commercial capability.