- \n
- In the second quarter, US GDP fell by a record 32.9%. Not much better do the key macro indicators look for most other economies.<\/li>\n
- Russia\u2019s GDP contracted by 8.5%. Compared with the second quarter of last year, the EU economy shrank by 15%. In several Asian countries the decline exceeded 10%.<\/li>\n
- Fueled by aggressive monetary and fiscal measures, stock indices are rising confidently despite a downturn in the real sector.<\/li>\n
- Gold prices exceeded a historic high, but Bitcoin has shown a more impressive trajectory since the start of the year. One of the most obvious reasons for Bitcoin\u2019s rise is demand from large players.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
The suspension of many businesses and entire sectors due to the pandemic plunged the global economy into an even deeper recession. The sharpest drop in business activity occurred in countries with a high number of COVID-19 infections, including the United States<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n![\"Coronavirus](\"https:\/\/forklog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-302.png\")
The United States leads in coronavirus infections \u2014 ~5.2 million people. Data: Trading Economics<\/a> as of 13.08.2020.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n To revive business activity, many countries continue to pump monetary mass into markets, employ fiscal stimulus, and provide generous financial aid to companies and households. This eases the consequences of lockdowns but leads to budget deficits, overheating of financial markets, depreciation of national currencies, and, as a result, inflation.<\/p>\n
The triumph of Keynesianism<\/a>, tempered by quantitative easing (QE<\/a>) and other \u201cinnovations\u201d, has further spurred demand for gold, traditionally considered a safe asset, as well as for Bitcoin. The correlation of the latter with the precious metal has been rising since the start of the year, growing<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A crisis unlike any other<\/h2>\n
The global economy\u2019s situation surpassed the pessimistic expectations of many authoritative organisations, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In its June update<\/a> the IMF writes:<\/p>\n
\n
\u00abThe COVID-19 pandemic has had a more negative impact on economic activity in the first half of 2020 than anticipated, and, according to the forecast, the recovery will be more gradual than previously projected\u00bb.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Analysts at the IMF say that low-income households are particularly hard hit. This threatens substantial progress in reducing extreme poverty achieved globally since the 1990s. World economic growth is expected only next year \u2014 about 5.4%.<\/p>\n
McKinsey data show that last year tourism accounted for 10% of global GDP. This year tourist arrivals are expected to fall by 80%, risking 120 million jobs.<\/p>\n
\n
#Tourism<\/a> made up 10% of global GDP in 2019. This year, with tourist arrivals set to plummet by 80%, 120 million jobs are at risk.<\/p>\n
Reopening the #travel<\/a> industry will require government-sector collaboration never seen before, in four big ways \ud83d\udeeb https:\/\/t.co\/bO6H2Qo6lL<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/y40tQTD3b4<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 McKinsey & Company (@McKinsey) August 6, 2020<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n