September 7, 2020 - 15:17 AMT
Pandemic could cost the world $35 trillion through 2025, expert says

The coronavirus pandemic could cost the world economy some $35 trillion through 2025, Bloomberg cited estimates by Warwick McKibbin of the Brookings Institution and Australia National University.

“You have to get quite a lot of the population vaccinated before the economic costs start to come down,” he said.

According to him, though, even when a vaccine is devised, making it available worldwide on the necessary scale is going to take time.

The concerns are multiple. The coming northern winter may trigger another wave of the virus as the wait for a vaccine continues. Government support for furloughed workers and bank moratoriums on loan repayments are set to expire. Strains between the U.S. and China could get worse in the run-up to November’s presidential election, and undermine business confidence.