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3 challenges in creating a coronavirus vaccine – and how they are being overcome
There are multiple teams working on a coronavirus vaccine, with the hope that several could be approved in record speed.Billions of doses will need to be manufactured, meaning collaboration between industry, regulators and the scientific community will be crucial.The...
IMF: Why social safety nets should be extended long after lockdown
When the Great Lockdown finally ends, a strong economic recovery that benefits everyone will depend on improved social safety nets and broad-based fiscal support, writes the IMF.From being more generous to the poorest, to helping people find jobs, here are three...
Here’s why the world’s recovery from COVID-19 could be doughnut shaped
Doughnut plan seeks to balance the needs of people and the environment.Amsterdam aims to offer everyone fair social terms within safe ecological limits.The idea was conceived by Kate Raworth, an Oxford University economist.A shortfall of investment in climate action...
Z, V or ‘Nike swoosh’ – what shape will the COVID-19 recession take?
The “Great Lockdown” has hit global economies hard. Business shutdowns have left unemployment soaring, supply chains fragmented and markets plummeting. One International Monetary Bank official has said the Great Lockdown could lead to the worst economic downturn since...
Coronavirus won’t spell the end for globalization – but change is unavoidable
The value of Chinese exports in the first two months of 2020 fell by 17.2% year on year, while imports slowed by 4%.Major industries have suffered at the hands of COVID-19, with nuclear reactors, electrical machinery and equipment, plastics, and organic chemicals...
Africa needs an economic lifeline to help it fight COVID-19 – here’s why it’s a solid investment
Sub-Saharan Africa is set to experience a major economic downturn as a result of COVID-19.With global interest rates at rock bottom, there has never been a better time for the world to invest in Africa and its industries.By investing in Africa now, we create a more...
How 2 out of every 5 jobs lost during COVID-19 may not come back
The US had a 14.7% rate of unemployment in April.Researchers estimate that 42% of pandemic-induced layoffs will result in a permanent job loss.COVID-19 will have 'profound, long-term consequences for the reallocation of jobs, workers, and capital across firms and...
This was the year automation started taking over the workforce
A recent study finds that low-skilled workers are more at risk from displacement by robots than high-skilled workers.1987 was a key inflection point in the U.S. - when jobs lost to automation stopped being replaced by an equal number of similar workplace...
$82 trillion over 5 years? Cambridge study counts the cost of coronavirus
The global economy could take a hit of some $82 trillion in a worst case scenario from the coronavirus, according to the University of Cambridge.In case of speedy recovery, an "optimistic loss" of $3.3 trillion is likely.The figures represent how much potential growth...