How Hard Will GDP Be Hit in 2020?

The OECD released its latest Economic Outlook today, revealing the projected impact the Covid-19 pandemic will have on global GDP in 2020. Gross domestic product is currently expected to be down by 4.5 percent on last year.

Adding further context, the OECD writes: "After collapsing in the first half of the year, economic output recovered swiftly following the easing of measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and the initial re-opening of businesses. Policymakers reacted rapidly and massively to buffer the initial blow to incomes and jobs. But the pace of recovery has lost momentum over the summer. Restoring confidence will be crucial to how successfully economies can recover, and for this we need to learn to safely live with the virus."

As this infographic shows, for countries such as Ital, India, Mexico and the UK, the projected hit is expected to be especially hard, all of which are predicted to experience a fall of more than 10 percent. The initial epicenter, China, is expected to go unscathed, potentially even recording growth of 1.8 percent. The United States is below the global figure with a 3.8 percent reduction.