by Freedonia Industry Studies
March 4, 2020
Much of the economic impact of the COVID-19 coronavirus deals with its disruption of international trade. Global supply chains are intricately linked, expertly optimized, and – as a result – often inflexible in the face of disruption. These fragile international linkages, key to the modern economy, are the reason why most economists predict that the coronavirus will have a much larger negative impact than the SARS outbreak in 2003.
In an article, Bloomberg Economics looks at the flipside – how can international trade help ease the economic impacts of the coronavirus? Remedies such as reducing tariffs and increasing international coordination would help grease the wheels of trade and mitigate the downside to the virus. But in today’s atmosphere of divisive, confrontational politics, hoping for greater international cooperation and easing of tensions may be a tall order.