Although the actual economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic is clouded by uncertainty, experts agree the longer the global economy remains at a near-standstill, the more difficult will be the return to normalcy.
Last week, the International Monetary Fund issued a grim forecast, predicting the world economy would suffer its worst year since the Great Depression, while Canada’s economy was expected to shrink by 6.2 per cent. “I think the question is going to be how much of this crisis that we are experiencing is a permanent change or a temporary change,” says University of Winnipeg Economic associate professor Stefan Dodds. “So if we think that within a month or two we have the pandemic under control and aren’t so worried about disease