The coronavirus outbreak was declared as a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation on 11th March 2020. Since then, several countries are under strict lockdown, and only essential services are being allowed. The coronavirus outbreak has taken a massive toll on the global economy.
So far, over 1,500,000 people have been diagnosed with COVID 19, and more than 89,000 people have lost their lives fighting this virus. The USA has reported the most number of positive cases so far in the entire world. The financial markets all over the world are plunging because of lockdowns. Currently, over 2 billion people around the globe are under some sort lockdown, and only essential services are being allowed. Online job portal Internshala announced free access to its online classes for children about healthcare.
Global financial markets crash amid the global pandemic.
The World Health Organisation declared the COVID 19 as a global pandemic almost a month ago. The numbers of COVID 19 positive cases are still increasing substantially all over the world, and the deaths caused by the disease are also increasing each day exponentially. The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the financial markets around the globe has also been very bearish as they continue to crash. Governments all around the world announced relief packages for people and stimulus for financial markets, but the global economy would continue to plunge until businesses remain closed.
The unemployment rate is expected to surge.
The effect of coronavirus pandemic on the global economy can already be seen as the unemployment rate all over the world spiked in the last few months. Over 10 million people have filed for the unemployment claim in the United States, and millions are filing such claims each week in the country. The unemployment rate is expected to reach above 20%, which indicates that an unprecedented recession in on the way. The unemployment rate all over the world is likely to increase because of the prolonged lockdowns.
Companies report losses in revenues due to lockdowns.
Several companies across the globe have witnessed a sharp decline in the revenues since the coronavirus outbreak. The lockdown has forced several businesses to halt their operations entirely, which has caused companies to report losses in revenues. The impact of this global pandemic on the economy will remain long after the virus is gone. Traders liquidated their assets in panic when the WHO declared COVID 19 as a pandemic, which caused markets to crash.
The future remains uncertain.
It is not clear yet when the world would go back to normal, and businesses will operate like they used to. The lockdown in several countries has been extended due to the exponential increase in the numbers of COVID 19 positive cases. It might take several weeks or even months for things to back to normal and lockdowns to be removed.
Wuhan, where the virus originated, lifted the 76-day lockdown this week. This news provides a glimmer of hope that things can go back to normal, and there is a silver lining on the horizon.
Bitcoin also faced heat during the global pandemic.
In bitcoin news, the leading cryptocurrency witnessed a massive drop in its price last month. The price of bitcoin dropped to below $4,000 on 12th March before recovering to above $7,200 at the time of writing. The crypto market suffered major losses amid the global pandemic. Despite the popular opinion that bitcoin is the safe haven during the time of recession, the BTC price dropped to historic lows.
How would the world look like after the pandemic is over
Once the coronavirus outbreak dies out and things go back to normal, the world would not be the same as we know it. The looming recession is expected to be worse than what it was in 2008 and 09. Several people have already lost their jobs as businesses continue to remain close. Several governments announced stimulus packages to revive the financial markets, but trillion of dollars of injections into the market would not be enough to eliminate the inevitable recession that would affect the lives of billions of people around the world. Countries like Venezuela that are already suffering from hyperinflation and sanctions will continue to suffer from the humanitarian crisis for a long time.