1. COVID-19
Dynamic Briefing
Generated 03 September 2020 for Marco Antonio Gonzalez

2. COVID-19
Last review on Thu 23 July 2020
About
This dynamic briefing draws on the collective intelligence of the Forum network to explore the key trends,
interconnections and interdependencies between industry, regional and global issues. In the briefing, you
will find a visual representation of this topic (Transformation Map – interactive version available online via
intelligence.weforum.org ), an overview and the key trends affecting it, along with summaries and links to
the latest research and analysis on each of the trends. Briefings for countries also include the relevant
data from the Forum’s benchmarking indices. The content is continuously updated with the latest
thinking of leaders and experts from across the Forum network, and with insights from Forum meetings,
projects communities and activities.
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

3. 1. The Media’s Role During COVID-19
Balancing the public’s need for critical information with
business interests can be tricky.
2. Response and Recovery
Public officials and companies walk a fine line as they
attempt to reopen economies.
3. COVID-19’s Workforce Impact
The coronavirus has kept many employees away from
offices, while other workers remain on the frontlines.
4. Avoiding COVID-19 Infection and
Spread
People have been encouraged to stay home, but many
mobility restrictions are now being eased.
5. Finding a Vaccine
Some efforts to develop a COVID-19 vaccine appear to be
making progress.
6. COVID-19’s Impact on Trade
The WTO has warned that global trade could decline by
as much as 32% in 2020.
7. COVID-19’s Impact on Travel
Demand for air travel evaporated and new border controls
emerged as the coronavirus spread.
8. COVID-19’s Impact on Financial
Markets
Stock markets have been sent reeling, and assets of all
types have been impacted.
Executive summary
COVID-19 threatens to become one of the most difficult tests faced by humanity in modern history. As
the pandemic has spread it has taken lives, stirred anxiety and political drama, overwhelmed health
systems, and triggered potentially lasting geopolitical change. The International Monetary Fund says the
global economy now faces its worst downturn since the Great Depression, and Oxfam International has
warned that half a billion people could be pushed into poverty as a result of the unfolding crisis. Around
the world, desperate efforts are underway to contain what has become a profoundly disruptive outbreak.
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

4. The Media’s Role During COVID-19
Balancing the public’s need for critical information with business interests can be
tricky
A global pandemic makes sources of information about
social impact, risk factors, and the latest recommendations
from public officials on slowing the spread of the disease
critical. During any outbreak, whether it is COVID-19, SARS,
or Ebola, the media plays a key role as agenda-setter - by
distilling complex data into easily digestible and useful
information. However, COVID-19 has shined a spotlight on
several challenges faced by the media as the public looks to
it to function as a public-health educator. The first involves
balancing the public’s right to critical and timely health
information with the media industry’s business objectives.
Some news outlets, including major publications like The
New York Times and The Financial Times, are granting
people access to coronavirus-related news without the need
for a subscription. Others, such as The Boston Globe, have
come under fire for maintaining their paywall policy even for
articles about the pandemic. Restrictions placed on the right
to information potentially penalize the poor, who may not be
able to get the most accurate health-related news and
information - thereby making them more susceptible to
misinformation.
Another big challenge facing media outlets as they cover
COVID-19 is the set of unintended consequences of constant
exposure to sometimes inaccurate views and information -
often referred to as the “infodemic.” Concerns have also
been raised about people’s mental health as they steadily
consume negative news while making disruptive lifestyle
adjustments - like working from home and limiting social
interaction due to shelter-in-place measures. One survey of
Chinese citizens conducted relatively early in the pandemic
found that social media exposure was significantly
associated with depression and anxiety. Meanwhile
irresponsible media coverage has been blamed for fuelling
racist assaults on people of Chinese origin, for being
potential carriers of a “Chinese” disease. Perhaps the most
difficult challenge facing the media is the need to
communicate in a way that restores faith in scientific
institutions, amid a constant barrage of misinformation
related to everything from the concept that exposure to
sunlight or cleaning products can prevent COVID-19, to the
notion that it does not affect young people. Disseminating
such ideas could severely undermine official public health
recommendations, and put the public at greater risk.
- This key issue is curated in partnership with Dr. Edmund
W.J. Lee, Public Health Communications Scientist and
Research Fellow at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public
Health.
Related insight areas: Future of Media, Entertainment and
Culture, Global Health, Corporate Governance, Behavioural
Sciences, Internet Governance, Human Rights, Global
Governance, Arts and Culture, Inclusive Design, Values
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

5. World Economic Forum
5 things COVID-19 has taught us about
fighting climate change
02 September 2020
The immediate crisis we are facing today has much to
teach us about an even more existential threat: climate
change. Here are 5 lessons to take forward.
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
How the Swiss fared under partial
lockdown
02 September 2020
A joint study by EPFL, the Idiap Research Institute and the
University of Lausanne’s Institute of Psychology has
provided us with a unique snapshot of how Swiss
residents experienced the partial lockdown measures
resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. The findings
include gender disparities, doubts about the future and
hopes for change. .
Wharton School of the University of
Pennsylvania - Knowledge@Wharton
Creating Inclusive Public Policies:
Guidelines for Compassionate
Regulators
01 September 2020
“A policy’s success largely rests on how well inclusion is
embedded in its blueprints,” write Santosh K. Misra and
Wharton’s Raghuram Iyengar in this opinion piece.
Australian Strategic Policy Institute
Conflict and Covid-19 are a deadly mix
01 September 2020
We are all grappling with the impact of the
Covid-19 pandemic, but it could not have come at a
worse time for people already made extremely vulnerable
by warfare. .
Niskanen Center
Congress Must Demand Robust
Refugee Consultation Amid Record
Low Admissions and COVID-19
31 August 2020
In 1980, Congress passed legislation that gave the
president the responsibility of determining how many
refugees would be admitted each fiscal year, and how
that number would be split among world regions, after
appropriate consultation with the Congress. In the coming
weeks, the Trump administration should provide in-
person, cabinet-level consultation with the House and
Senate Judiciary Committees before coming to a final
decision on what the FY 2021 refugee resettlement plan
will look like. .
VoxEU
Reproduction numbers tend to 1 and
the reason could be behavioural
31 August 2020
Standard epidemiological models that show how infection
rates in the population rise and then fall assume that
people do not understand what’s going on. When people
react to infection rates by changing behaviour, the
model’s predictions are no longer valid. This column
explains why that can mean that pandemics don’t rage
out of control but becoming something more endemic. In
particular, epidemiological models that incorporate
rational economic agents tend to predict that pandemics
may move towards a steady state for a significant period
of time.
The Diplomat
How Japan’s Universal Health Care
System Led to COVID-19 Success
28 August 2020
As of August 22, Japan has registered 9.24 deaths per
million people due to COVID-19. Though Japan is the
most aged country in the world, this mortality rate is
much lower than in many other developed countries (i.e.,
529.92 in the United States, 609.92 in the U.K., 110.61 in
Germany). The reasons for the lower mortality rate in
Japan compared to Western countries are still being
examined. However, the Japanese health care system is
thought to be one of the main factors underlying Japan’s
success so far in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic
domestically.
Latest knowledge
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

6. Response and Recovery
Public officials and companies walk a fine line as they attempt to reopen economies
The reopening of many economies as COVID-19 recedes has
been accompanied by intense debate about whether
peoples’ lives should be put at risk to keep commerce
flowing. By mid-May 2020, China had largely reactivated its
factories, even as it was not immediately clear whether a
sufficient number of people around the world would be able
to buy what they produce. In Singapore, officials went from
receiving praise for their response to the outbreak to
abruptly having to close businesses and schools when a
second wave of cases struck the city-state in April. And in
the US, individual states were largely left to devise their own
plans for reopening even as the country remained the
epicentre of the pandemic - and as public health officials
warned of the dangers of relaxing social distancing measures
too early. US President Donald Trump signed a $484 billion
relief package in April that includes aid for small businesses,
and in May the European Commission unveiled a €1.85
trillion post-pandemic recovery plan. Meanwhile demand has
grown for bailouts for large businesses similar to what was
administered during the global financial crisis more than a
decade ago.
Public officials have also sought to find the right balance
when it comes to monetary policy. Central banks have
responded to the pandemic by cutting interest rates in ways
designed to encourage more consumer activity, for example.
Australia’s central bank cut its benchmark rate to a record
low, as the US Federal Reserve, the Reserve Bank of New
Zealand, the Bank of England, Bank Negara Malaysia, and
the Bank of Canada took similarly drastic action. In another
echo of the global financial crisis, some central banks
triggered emergency bond-buying programs aimed at
bolstering bond prices and curbing related interest rates
(when the US Federal Reserve announced it would slash its
benchmark rate, it also said it would kick off a $700 billion
“quantitative easing” asset-purchase program). The European
Central Bank, without much room to maneuver on interest
rates, unveiled its own, €750 billion quantitative easing
program in response to the pandemic. The central bank in
China, where COVID-19 was originally detected in late 2019,
has said it will use a variety of measures to limit the cost of
borrowing for hard-hit companies.
Related insight areas: Justice and Law, Healthcare Delivery,
Vaccination, Civic Participation, Pandemic Preparedness
and Response, The Great Reset, Global Governance, Agile
Governance, Humanitarian Action, Financial and Monetary
Systems, Workforce and Employment, Public Finance and
Social Protection, Cities and Urbanization
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

7. Asia Global Institute
Rebuilding Cities Better in the Post-
Covid-19 World
03 September 2020
Covid-19 and its means of transmission have created
unprecedented challenges for urban planning. How will
cities and their residents cope if present standards of
architectural design and creating cityscapes are
inadequate or unsafe in the face of new pathogens, asks
Jeffrey Kok Hui Chan of Singapore University of
Technology and Design. Despite uncertainties surrounding
the coronavirus, it could spark efforts to rebuild better
cities.
Policy Center For The New South
The national automotive industry faced
with the Covid-19: Should we be
worried about the impact on the
current account?
02 September 2020
The year 2020 is one of the most difficult years for the
global automotive industry. The pandemic first appeared
in a region of China known for its developed automotive
sector. Initially, it was the South Asian manufacturers who
first felt the impact of the shutdown in China before the
pandemic shifted to Europe and the United States and
before the disruption of value chains took on a global
dimension. In Morocco, the sector has not remained
immune to this turbulent context and its export
performance shows a decline of nearly 40% in turnover
over the first half of the year.
World Resources Institute
5 Pillars for a Green and Resilient
Recovery from COVID-19
01 September 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis is likely to
push tens of millions of people into poverty -- and this is
only a preview of how the climate crisis will threaten
human well-being. Yet we have all the means needed to
take a better, safer path.
Project Syndicate
The End of College as We Know It?
01 September 2020
When COVID-19 hit the United States in
March, colleges and universities around the country
quickly shifted to remote learning. But, as a new
semester begins, the pandemic is nowhere near under
control, and many institutions are wondering how much
longer they can survive with closed or restricted
campuses.
Project Syndicate
The COVID City
31 August 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has fallen hardest not
just on cities but on poorer, overcrowded neighborhoods,
lending further credence to the observation that, in
today's world, one's post code determines one's destiny.
But could the pandemic lead to a more advanced and
inclusive form of urbanism?.
Harvard Business School Working Knowledge
State and Local Governments Peer into
the the Pandemic Abyss
31 August 2020
State and local governments that rely heavily on sales tax
revenue face increasing financial burden absent federal
aid, says Daniel Green.
UN Women
Expert’s take: Four lessons from
COVID-19 that should shape policy
decisions everywhere
28 August 2020
Laura Turquet is a Policy Advisor at UN Women, where
she leads the organisation’s flagship report, Progress of
the World’s Women. For the past decade, she has
worked at UN Women leading major research and data
initiatives that inform the organization’s advocacy
objectives and empower civil society and governments to
seek and implement change. She is also a co-founder of
the UN Feminist Network.
Latest knowledge
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

8. COVID-19’s Workforce Impact
The coronavirus has kept many employees away from offices, while other workers
remain on the frontlines
The number of jobless claims made in the US between the
implementation of COVID-19 shutdown measures in mid-
March 2020 and mid-May topped 38 million. Meanwhile
analysts have speculated that China’s unemployment rate
may have reached about 10% amid the crisis, though the
official figure has remained at roughly 6%. Around the world,
organizations have had to reckon with a new reality where
they cannot support the number of employees they could
previously, or simply cannot expect employees to take daily
commutes in ways that may put them at increased risk of
exposure to the coronavirus. In Washington, one of the first
US states to see a spike in confirmed cases, firms including
Amazon and Microsoft quickly asked Seattle-area staff to
work from home, and Twitter has since told its employees
that many may work from home permanently. However,
other people have not been fortunate enough to be able to
work from home; the death toll among National Health
Service and social care workers in the United Kingdom
topped 300 in late May, and employees at meatpacking
plants in the US have been disproportionately exposed to
infection.
In China, the economic slowdown triggered by the outbreak
caused many companies to implement pay cuts or other
measures. Uxin, which sells used cars online and operates
about 1,500 service centres, said in early March it expected
it would take “some time” before operations returned to
normal, and that it had attempted a “workload-based
staffing program” across the company. Even as the number
of newly-reported COVID-19 cases in China appeared to be
levelling off in late February, only 30% of its small businesses
had so far reopened, according to information released by
the country’s industry ministry. In addition, factories across
China experienced difficulties related to workers being
impeded by coronavirus-related safety measures and travel
disruptions. Usually bustling locales such as Wenzhou, a city
in the southeast of the country that produces much of the
world’s shoes, eyeglasses, and clothing, saw their
workforces dramatically thinned. In response to spikes in
unemployment, policy-makers around the world have sought
to deploy relief. In late April, for example, the European
Union unveiled a €100 billion unemployment scheme.
Related insight areas: Inclusive Design, Systemic Racism,
Aviation, Travel and Tourism, Retail, Consumer Goods and
Lifestyle, Agile Governance, Digital Economy and New Value
Creation, Workforce and Employment, Supply Chain and
Transport, Future of Economic Progress, Advanced
Manufacturing and Production, Education and Skills, Future
of Health and Healthcare, Public Finance and Social
Protection, Corporate Governance
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

9. LSE Business Review
COVID-19 may exacerbate the digital
divide among businesses
03 September 2020
What is the essential task of management? To look after
the short term in ways that not only protect, but even
enhance medium and long-term prospects. For
businesses, the COVID-19 crisis presents massive
challenges to fulfilling this quest; it is difficult to pull off
even in periods of growth. Previous downturns
demonstrated how problematic it is to ride out, for any
length of time, dramatic falloffs in sales, inventory
problems, customers defaulting on debts, running out of
cash, and delayed new products. Understandably,
businesses focus on short-term survival and adaptation.
Then begins the slow process of recovery. How are
businesses responding this time? And what role will digital
technologies play? .
The Diplomat
COVID-19 and Japan’s Mysterious
‘Night City’ District
02 September 2020
COVID-19’s persistent presence in Japan — with, as of
early September, more than 600 daily reported cases on
average — has been very often associated with a district
called “ Yoru no Machi ” by Japanese media and
politicians. The term literally means “night city” and
vaguely refers to host clubs, sex establishments, and night
clubs, implying physical contact. Does it? Actually, it’s not
entirely clear what Yoru no Machi means.
Rocky Mountain Institute
From In Trouble to Informed
01 September 2020
As the coronavirus swept around the world,
dramatic upheaval followed in its wake. Many industries
have been devastated while others have boomed,
joblessness has spiked as automobile emissions and
mobility demand have plummeted.
Harvard Kennedy School – Journalist’s
Resource
Reopening schools amid the
coronavirus pandemic: 5 research
studies to consider
01 September 2020
As education officials re-open schools for the fall semester
or debate the possibility, we look at research on the role
children play in the transmission of COVID-19.
INSEAD Knowledge
Pandemic or No, It’s Business as
Usual for Boards
31 August 2020
For now, corporate boards prefer to keep the status quo –
and the long view – in the face of Covid-19 upheaval.
VoxEU
COVID-19 and the effects of social
distancing on the economy
31 August 2020
Social distancing policies are necessary from a public
health perspective but can have negative effects on
economic activity. Using a newly constructed dataset of
sectoral dependence on the use and sale of intermediate
goods, this column investigates whether social distancing
policies can have negative spillover effects on sectors that
are not directly targeted due to input-output linkages. It
finds that firms that depend on the sale of intermediate
goods to sectors affected by social distancing measures
are more affected by the crisis.
UNESCO
11 million girls may not return to school
28 August 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has put over 11
million girls at risk of not returning to school, threatening
decades of progress toward girls’ education and gender
equality. If there are fewer girls in the classroom, it will
mean fewer women who can make valuable social and
economic contributions to their communities in the future.
If girls lose out, we all lose out.
Latest knowledge
9
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

10. Avoiding COVID-19 Infection and Spread
People have been encouraged to stay home, but many mobility restrictions are now
being eased
According to the World Health Organization, the COVID-19
virus infects people of all ages - though older people and
those with underlying medical conditions are at a higher risk
of getting a severe form of the disease. The WHO
recommends that people frequently wash their hands with
either soap and water or alcohol-based hand rub, and that
they maintain a comfortable distance between themselves
and others if they must venture outside. People coughing or
sneezing pose a particular threat, as this can spray droplets
containing the virus. Rules requiring people to stay home in
a bid to limit social contact have been implemented with
varying degrees of severity around the world - and in many
places are now being relaxed. The WHO also recommends
that people avoid touching their eyes, nose, and mouth, as
hands can pick up viruses from surfaces. Anyone with a
fever, cough, or difficulty breathing is advised to seek
medical help. There is evidence that masks can help limit
the spread of the coronavirus, and they should generally be
worn when making trips for food and other essentials. In a
bid to bust coronavirus-related myths, the WHO says there is
currently no proof that hydroxychloroquine or any other drug
can cure or prevent COVID-19, and that drinking bleach will
not only not protect you but may in fact kill you.
There have been abundant examples of irresponsible
behaviour in the face of the spreading pandemic. Mask
hoarding became an issue, to the point where the French
government felt compelled to requisition all current and
future local stocks of protective masks in order to ensure
they will be available for health workers and patients. Some
of the more egregious examples of irresponsible behaviour
have included attempting to assign blame for (or assign a
nationality to) the outbreak, attempting to sell “nonmedical
immune boosters” as a means to ward off infection, and
suggesting that the severity of COVID-19 has been hyped for
political purposes. Shortcomings have also been exposed
when it comes to official preparation for such an outbreak,
particularly in terms of testing capabilities and activity. For
example, by the beginning of March South Korea had
performed more than 100,000 tests for the coronavirus on
patients, or more than 2,000 per million people, while the
US had tested less than 500 people in total at the same
point. Faulty test kits were initially distributed in the US in
February, and there have been some delays in delivering
testing kits to states.
Related insight areas: Healthcare Delivery, Future of Media,
Entertainment and Culture, Mental Health, Behavioural
Sciences, Public Finance and Social Protection, Global
Governance, Retail, Consumer Goods and Lifestyle, Values,
Vaccination, Global Health, Ageing, Agile Governance
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COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

11. The Diplomat
As COVID-19 Surges in South Korea,
Doctors Are Furious Over Government
Training Plan
02 September 2020
South Korea was once praised for its effective response to
the outbreak of COVID-19 and showed a sign of
recovering from the pandemic ahead of many other
nations. The latest numbers tell a different story. The
country had reported 20,449 cases of the virus as of
September 2, up 267 compared to the previous day. That
“marked the 20th consecutive day of triple-digit rises,”
Yonhap reported, a streak dating back to August 14.
World Economic Forum
How local modelling can build
resilience in the post-COVID era
02 September 2020
COVID-19 has shown us we need more resilient supply
chains and infrastructure - and assessing risks at a hyper-
local level is key to doing so successfully.
World Economic Forum
6 tips on how to lead in COVID times
01 September 2020
The business world is undergoing rapid and
unprecedented change. Here are 6 ways leaders can help
their staff adapt and thrive in this new age.
Project Syndicate
The COVID Middle-Income Trap
01 September 2020
COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on
middle-income countries, especially in Latin America. By
helping these countries to overcome the pandemic and its
economic fallout, the international community will be
acting in its own interests, too.
International Labour Organization
COVID-19 and beyond: “How can
social dialogue help us get through the
crisis together?”
31 August 2020
On 26th August 2020, the International Labour
Organization (ILO) and GIZ development agency brought
together industry's leaders & experts to talk about how
social dialogue can impact and improve COVID – 19 crisis
recovery for the garment sector supply chain in Asia. .
VoxEU
Lockdown accounting
29 August 2020
Many countries have implemented social
distancing and lockdown policies to tame the spread of
Covid-19. This column discusses the potential GDP and
employment effects of lockdown policies for a broad
cross-section of countries ranging in income per capita
from Niger to Luxembourg. It shows that the employment
and GDP effects of lockdown policies are U-shaped in
income per capita. While workers in rich countries have a
substantially higher ability to work from home, which
mitigates declines in employment and GDP, poor
countries concentrate employment and value-added in
essential sectors that are not shut down. Middle-income
countries see the largest declines as they feature relatively
large employment shares in non-essential sectors and
relatively low work from home ability.
World Health Organization
WHO's Science in 5 - Herd Immunity
28 August 2020
Watch WHO experts explain science related to
COVID-19. Today, the concept is Herd Immunity. .
Latest knowledge
11
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

12. Finding a Vaccine
Some efforts to develop a COVID-19 vaccine appear to be making progress
Following the outbreak of a strain of the swine flu virus in
1976, public health officials in the US worried that they were
faced with a repeat of the 1918 "Spanish flu" that infected
roughly a third of the world’s population - and hurried to
identify a vaccine. The predicted epidemic never
materialized, and hundreds of people vaccinated that year
developed a serious adverse reaction. That history informs
the way researchers and officials now take a generally
cautious approach to vaccine development. The World
Health Organization has taken pains to communicate to the
public that COVID-19 will require its own vaccine. By July
2020, the developers of three vaccines, including one being
devised jointly by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca,
had published promising trial results - though more research
was required to determine if any will effectively protect
against COVID-19 infection. Meanwhile clinical trials have
gotten underway to determine the ability of existing drugs to
combat the effects of the disease. One drug designed to
fight the Ebola virus, remdesivir, has demonstrated some
ability to speed up recovery time for patients infected with
COVID-19.
Some studies have suggested that the blood plasma of
COVID-19 survivors can be used to help victims, and several
efforts were commenced to use the blood of survivors to
help develop the first real treatment for the disease; it can
be difficult to obtain an accurate fatality rate in the midst of
a pandemic, though experts estimated in March that it was
about 1% for COVID-19, or ten times the rate of a typical flu.
In mid-April, the WHO published a statement on behalf of a
group of scientists, physicians, funders, and manufacturers
aiming to speed the availability of a COVID-19 vaccine. The
group applauded community measures that have reduced
the spread of the virus, and pledged to use the time gained
by these efforts to develop a vaccine as rapidly as possible.
However, the ultimate availability of any successful vaccine
that is identified may depend on domestic politics. In the
US, for example, Democrats have pushed for rules to ensure
that a vaccine will be affordable, while Republicans have
expressed concern that price controls might discourage
companies from aggressively pursuing a solution.
Related insight areas: Human Rights, Inclusive Design,
Biotechnology, Future of Media, Entertainment and Culture,
Innovation, Vaccination, Future of Health and Healthcare,
Justice and Law, Global Health, Global Governance,
Healthcare Delivery, Insurance and Asset Management
12
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

13. World Economic Forum
COVID-19 and your brain: 6 ways to
control the damage to your mental
health
02 September 2020
Do you suffer from a tendency to ruminate? Have negative
bias and an alarmist sense of threat? Emotional
numbness? Inattention and cognitive fog?.
VoxEU
Internal migration and the spread of
COVID-19
02 September 2020
Many internal migrants returned to their place of origin
after the initial outbreaks of COVID-19 and before national
lockdowns were in place. Has this behaviour contributed
to the further spread of the pandemic and to its heavy
death toll? Looking at the case of Italy and using data on
the place of origin and destination of internal migrants,
this column finds that provinces more exposed to return
migration from areas hit by the pandemic earlier on
experienced considerably more COVID-19 deaths in the
ensuing months.
London School of Economics and Political
Science
From Impact to Inequality: How Post-
COVID-19 government policy is
privatising research innovation
01 September 2020
Post-COVID-19 government policy has included an
increase in investment in the UK’s research sector.
However, Daniel Hook finds that the emphasis on the
impact of this research means that longer-term, less
measurable, blue skies research is being pushed into the
private sector. Not only is blue skies research the key
driver of technological change, but it is also linked
historically with the largest redistributions of wealth. If
governments around the world adopt policies that lead to
the privatisation of tomorrow’s research, the result will be
faster increases in wealth inequality, with all that brings. .
Scientific American
COVID-19 Can Wreck Your Heart,
Even if You Haven't Had Any
Symptoms
31 August 2020
Beyond its scientific backing, the notion that a COVID-19
patient might wind up with long-term lung scarring or
breathing issues has the ring of truth. After all, we hear
the stories, right? The virus can leave survivors explaining
how they struggled to breathe, or how it can feel, in the
words of actress Alyssa Milano, “like an elephant is sitting
on my chest.” We’ve also known for a while that some
COVID-19 patients’ hearts are taking a beating, too—but
over the past few weeks, the evidence has strengthened
that cardiac damage can happen even among people
who have never displayed symptoms of coronavirus
infection. And these frightening findings help explain why
college and professional sports leagues are proceeding
with special caution as they make decisions about
whether or not to play. .
IndiaSpend
‘COVID Lessons: Invest In Basic
Healthcare, Surveillance & Public
Health’
31 August 2020
India has been chronically underspending on health, and
COVID-19 has put in stark focus the damage that can do,
K Sujatha Rao, former Union health secretary says. “We
need to have a constant vigil and it is very important to
keep investing in basic healthcare, surveillance systems,
and public health functions,” she adds. .
Center for Global Development
Mental Health and the COVID-19
Pandemic: What We Knew, What We
Now Know, and What We Still Don’t
Know
28 August 2020
Evidence of the impact of COVID-19 on mental health is
growing. And yet there is still a lot we don’t know about
the pandemic’s effect on people’s mental health.
World Economic Forum
Doctor Copper: this Canadian mining
company explains how the red metal
fights COVID-19
28 August 2020
The COVID-19 virus survives for less than four hours on
copper surfaces, compared to up to three days on plastic
and stainless steel.
Latest knowledge
13
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

14. COVID-19’s Impact on Trade
The WTO has warned that global trade could decline by as much as 32% in 2020
In early April 2020, the World Trade Organization announced
that global merchandise trade was set to plummet by
between 13% and 32% in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19
pandemic. Meanwhile global banks, charged with managing
the regular flows of finance necessary to keep trade afloat,
have been compelled to figure out ways to keep their
trading operations running as usual as they split up
departments and isolate employees in a bid to limit the
further spread of the coronavirus. Trade shows and
conferences have also been severely impacted. Major
annual events including the Geneva International Motor
Show, the South by Southwest festival in Texas, and the
Mobile World Congress in Barcelona have been cancelled (in
the case of the Geneva event, for the first time since 1904
for reasons other than a world war), while other normally-
popular events have lost out on large numbers of attendees.
As more aspects of global commerce are affected by COVID-
19, the effects are likely to spread further - prompting a
need for more responsive action from international
organizations and central banks.
China was home to the first detected outbreak of COVID-19;
it is also now commonly referred to as “the world’s factory”
due to the significant amount of global manufacturing that
takes place there. China accounted for about $4 trillion in
manufacturing “value added” (a term that accounts for all
net output) in 2018, or nearly a third of the global total for
that year, according to World Bank data - and the country is
home to seven of the ten busiest container ports in the
world. Data published by China's National Bureau of
Statistics for the January-February 2020 period, when the
number of confirmed cases in the country was rising sharply,
reflect declines in domestic factory output, fixed asset
construction activity, and retail sales - though figures for
March marked the return to a trade surplus for the country.
The shipping companies that bring goods from China to the
rest of the world have had to reduce the number of vessels
in operation due to lowered demand, however, and in some
ways the pandemic has only worsened already-difficult trade
relations between China and the US.
Related insight areas: Development Finance, Infrastructure,
Banking and Capital Markets, Agriculture, Food and
Beverage, International Trade and Investment, Global
Governance, Agile Governance, Financial and Monetary
Systems, Automotive, Emerging Multinationals, Digital
Economy and New Value Creation, Geo-economics,
Advanced Manufacturing and Production, Supply Chain and
Transport
14
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

15. Brookings Institution
How the Fed will respond to the
COVID-19 recession in an era of low
rates and low inflation
02 September 2020
On September 1, the Hutchins Center on Fiscal &
Monetary Policy will host Federal Reserve Governor Lael
Brainard to talk about the outlook for the economy and
monetary policy, as well as the Fed’s new framework. .
Pacific Forum
Conflict and Coronavirus: How COVID-
19 is Impacting Southeast Asia’s
Conflicts
02 September 2020
Since COVID-19 spread out of China in January 2020, it
has caused unprecedented damage to the global
economy and national health systems. The virus also
having serious ramifications.
South African Institute of International Affairs
(SAIIA)
Corruption hampers the development
of South Africa’s youth
31 August 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has once again exposed the
rife corruption and disregard for governance,
accountability and transparency by senior officials in South
Africa.
The New Humanitarian
Italy’s Lampedusa: Back on the
migration front line
31 August 2020
Boat arrivals have surged this summer, overcrowding
processing centres and rekindling Italy’s bitter and highly
politicised debate over migration.
War on the Rocks
COVID-19 and Economic Competition
with China and Russia
31 August 2020
The novel coronavirus pandemic has upended the global
economy, reflected in dramatic declines in growth in
national economies throughout the world, including those
countries that the United States deems its leading global
competitors: China and Russia .
VoxEU
Horrible trade-offs in a pandemic
29 August 2020
Fighting COVID-19 has forced countries around
the world to make trade-offs between lives and
livelihoods. But in countries where many people already
live at or close to subsistence, the alternatives are more
excruciating yet. This column analyses cases in which the
trade-off is actually between lives and lives; in other
words, countries that can save their populations from the
pandemic or from deprivation, but not both. The authors
consider ways to alleviate these trade-offs, as well as their
implications for policy – both national and international.
Project Syndicate
The Post-Pandemic Economy’s
Barriers to Growth
28 August 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic could not have come at a worse
time for the global economy. If history is any guide, the
current period of deglobalization, public indebtedness,
weakening growth, and the expanding economic role of
governments does not bode well for sustainable GDP
growth.
Latest knowledge
15
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

16. COVID-19’s Impact on Travel
Demand for air travel evaporated and new border controls emerged as the coronavirus
spread
Roughly one million Chinese tourists had been visiting Bali
every year before the spread of COVID-19 reduced outbound
travel from the world’s second-biggest economy to a relative
trickle. Bali is not alone; in Australia, for example, Chinese
tourists were estimated to have spent AUD $11.5 billion in
2019 alone, while in Switzerland Chinese tourists accounted
for about one-fifth of the international tourists visiting the
cities of Lucerne and Bern. Roughly a few months after the
coronavirus was first detected, a European Union official
announced that Europe’s tourism industry was losing €1
billion per month due to the decrease in arrivals from China.
As the coronavirus spread globally, its impact on travel and
tourism only broadened - as more would-be travelers stayed
home and public officials tried to prevent outbreaks. On 11
March US President Donald Trump abruptly announced a
ban on travelers from dozens of European countries. The
move spawned confusion, prompted the panicked buying of
early return flights by American tourists abroad, and sent
stocks plummeting. It also earned a rebuke from European
governments who said they had not been consulted.
Within Europe, the spread of the coronavirus has tested a
core belief in fluid cross-border travel and trade. It has also
drawn a line under the European Union’s lack of control over
an area where most authority resides with national
governments. Spain and Portugal partially sealed their
borders, while Austria prevented people from crossing into
the country from Italy - the hardest-hit EU member state in
terms of confirmed COVID-19 cases - without a health
certificate (Austria also reintroduced border controls with
Switzerland). Germany, too, sealed borders (with the
exception of goods and commuters), and the Czech
Republic followed an initial restriction on entry to the country
from 15 countries including fellow EU members with a
broader ban on all inbound foreign travel. The European
Commission said in a statement that while member states
have the ability to temporarily implement controls at internal
EU borders in the event of a serious threat, those controls
must remain an exception - and must respect the principle
of proportionality. The commission acknowledged that while
it can issue opinions about the necessity of such measures,
it cannot veto them.
Related insight areas: International Trade and Investment,
Geopolitics, European Union, United States, Migration,
Aerospace, Aviation, Travel and Tourism, Switzerland,
Indonesia, Australia, Arts and Culture, China
16
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

17. Policy Center For The New South
Covid-19: Are we heading for a war
without guns?
02 September 2020
The crisis of the new Coronavirus is exacerbating the
tensions between the United States and China, thus
foreshadowing a war without guns, in which the stakes
are neither territorial nor ideological, but economic.
Having adopted a vehement attitude towards China, well
before this crisis, the tenant of the White House has
brandished the threat of economic sanctions against
China and is pushing towards its isolation on the
international scene in order to contain its influence. In
contradiction with Deng Xiao Ping’s famous maxim “Hide
your strength and bide your time”, Xi Jinping’s China
claims to be a key player on the world chessboard whose
quest for supremacy, with its variable geometry, is less
and less camouflaged.
Institute for New Economic Thinking
COVID-19 Shows that Global Value
Chains Shouldn’t Keep Africa in Chains
of Dependence
01 September 2020
During this interview, Professor Kako Nubukpo, Dean of
the Faculty of Economics at the University of Lomé, Togo
and former Minister of Prospective and Evaluation of
Public Policy of Togo considers the economic and social
impact of the COVID-19 crisis and its repercussions on
monetary policy and fiscal reforms underway in West and
Central Africa today.
Brookings
American individualism is an obstacle
to wider mask wearing in the US
31 August 2020
As Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and his
running mate Kamala Harris call for a national mask
mandate , it provides the first glimpse of how efforts to
combat the virus may change radically under Democratic
leadership. As we have documented previously, a large
segment of the American public has been resistant to
wearing a mask to reduce the spread of the coronavirus.
Although we were able to identify important differences in
mask usage based on race and partisanship, we were not
able to evaluate the underlying reasons that are driving
this critical trend. .
Project Syndicate
Realizing America’s Anti-COVID
Potential
31 August 2020
The United States should have invested more money in
science in recent decades, established a virus and
pathogen forecasting service, and built resilient public-
health systems on the basis of cost-effective diagnostics.
And yet, even though the US did none of those things, it
can still limit the damage caused by the pandemic.
The Diplomat
Australia’s Aged Care Facilities Have
Failed Amid the Pandemic
28 August 2020
Australia’s aged care sector was failing long before the
pandemic arrived. A royal commission into the treatment
of the elderly in aged care facilities last year found that
“the aged care system fails to meet the needs of older,
vulnerable, citizens. It does not deliver uniformly safe and
quality care, is unkind and uncaring towards older people
and, in too many instances, it neglects them.” COVID-19
has simply created an environment in which the
mistreatment of elderly Australians has reached an all-
time-low.
Asian Development Bank (ADB)
Resetting Asia: Technology,
Investment, and Sustainability
28 August 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic is posing unprecedented
challenges, forcing us to rethink our vision of the future to
refocus on creating a more inclusive and sustainable Asia
and the Pacific. .
World Economic Forum
Could copper beat COVID-19? Three
lessons from Chile
27 August 2020
Chile has long led the world in copper-based innovation,
using the metal’s antiviral properties to develop products
from disinfectant to children’s clothes. When the
pandemic came, it was ready.
Latest knowledge
17
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

18. COVID-19’s Impact on Financial Markets
Stock markets have been sent reeling, and assets of all types have been impacted
In addition to having to worry about contracting a fast-
spreading coronavirus, many investors around the world
have also had to contend with the sweeping impact of
COVID-19 on financial markets and asset prices. In mid-
March, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, a measure of 30
of the most prominent publicly traded stocks in America,
registered its second-worst day of trading in its 124-year
history. For many Americans, particularly those who are
saving for retirement with 401(k)-style accounts, the troubled
stock market hit close to home. In Europe, Britain’s FTSE
100, France’s CAC 40, Switzerland’s SMI, and Germany’s
DAX also took coronavirus-related hits. In Asia, on 13 March
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index recorded its sharpest one-day drop
since April 1990. Bond prices also declined sharply amid the
turmoil, while gold - usually a safe haven for investors -
declined in value. Meanwhile as the spread of COVID-19
depleted oil demand, an oil-market war erupted between
Saudi Arabia and Russia - which resulted in the price per
barrel suffering a steep decline.
As markets were knocked off balance, expectations
increased for policy-makers to step in and start
implementing stimulus measures aimed at safeguarding
global growth - by, for example, lowering (already low)
interest rates as a means to potentially facilitate more
lending and consumer activity. European Central Bank
President Christine Lagarde announced that the bank was
ready to take measures to address the impact of the
worsening outbreak (the ECB later unveiled an emergency,
€750 billion bond-buying program), and central banks
including those in the US and Australia swiftly moved ahead
with related rate cuts - in Australia’s case, bringing its
benchmark lending rate to a record low. A meeting of the
G7 nations held in early March illustrated the sensitivity of
financial markets to the twists and turns of the coronavirus
response; though investors had anticipated some sort of
announcement from the high-level gathering of central
bankers and political leaders on concrete steps aimed at
counteracting the effects of COVID-19, none was
forthcoming - and stocks promptly responded by giving up
the gains that had been made as hopes for policy relief had
built.
Related insight areas: Geo-economics, Banking and Capital
Markets, Oil and Gas, Private Investors, Global Governance,
Financial and Monetary Systems, Institutional Investors,
Public Finance and Social Protection, China, Global Health,
International Security, Future of Economic Progress
18
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

19. Center for Global Development
Digital Technology in Social Assistance
Transfers for COVID-19 Relief:
Lessons from Selected Cases
02 September 2020
Many countries have launched unprecedented relief
packages to cushion the economic and social impact of
the COVID-19 pandemic. This short review considers
some initial lessons emerging from selected countries
around the use of digital technology to implement these
government-to-people (G2P) social transfer programs.
The New Humanitarian
In Peru’s Amazon, Indigenous COVID-
19 patients get too little, too late
01 September 2020
Unable to get to a hospital, those in remote areas with
coronavirus are reliant on shamans, traditional remedies,
and community volunteers.
World Health Organization
Dr Tedros talks about four things
countries can do to curb the pandemic
and avoid further lock downs
01 September 2020
"We are 8 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and we
understand that people are tired and yearn to get on with
their lives, but no country can just pretend the pandemic
is over. This virus spreads easily and we all must remain
serious about suppressing its transmission and saving
lives"- WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom
Ghebreyesus .
TED
Can light stop the coronavirus?
31 August 2020
Far-UVC light is a type of ultraviolet light that
kills microbes and viruses and, crucially, seems to be safe
to use around humans. Radiation scientist David Brenner
describes how we could use this light to stop the spread
of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, in
hospitals, nursing homes, trains and other public indoor
spaces -- paving the way for a potentially game-changing
tool in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
VoxEU
The corona crisis and corporate
bankruptcies
31 August 2020
The corona crisis has hit the Swiss economy hard, with
survey results showing that corporate profits and demand
expectations collapsed and uncertainty about future
business prospects has risen sharply. This column uses
unique company bankruptcy data for Switzerland to
assess the current bankruptcy trend using the concept of
excess mortality. The corona crisis is not causing a wave
of bankruptcies for the time being, but it is still too early
to give the all-clear.
The Diplomat
How COVID-19 Wreaked Havoc on
South Korea’s Labor Market
28 August 2020
One of the early protagonists of the struggle against the
coronavirus was South Korea. The densely peopled
peninsula, just a short hop away from the Chinese trade
centers of Shanghai and Qingdao, was ravished early on.
By mid-February, South Korea was the nation with the
highest count of new infections after China. Since then its
numbers have slipped to a few dozen, but clusters of the
disease have resurfaced across the country, often in
regulatory blind spots such as at church congregations,
fitness dance classes, night clubs, and a logistics
warehouse.
Observer Research Foundation
The fear factor: How Portugal tackled
COVID19
28 August 2020
Portugal was hailed as a success story in the early days of
the COVID-19 pandemic. The reasons for the relatively
controlled spread of the virus have been debated and
vary, and whether it can still be deemed a success story,
the Portuguese themselves are too cautious to confirm.
As the world prepares itself for a seasonal uptake in cases
worldwide in the coming months, how is Portugal faring
with this first impact of COVID-19? By 20 August, Portugal
registered 1,786 COVID-19 related deaths, with 54,701
confirmed cases and 40,129 recoveries.
Latest knowledge
19
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

20. 1. The Media’s Role During COVID-19
5 things COVID-19 has taught us about fighting climate change, World
Economic Forum, www.weforum.org
How the Swiss fared under partial lockdown, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale
de Lausanne, actu.epfl.ch
Creating Inclusive Public Policies: Guidelines for Compassionate Regulators,
Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania - Knowledge@Wharton,
knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu
Conflict and Covid-19 are a deadly mix, Australian Strategic Policy Institute,
www.aspistrategist.org.au
Congress Must Demand Robust Refugee Consultation Amid Record Low
Admissions and COVID-19 , Niskanen Center, www.niskanencenter.org
Reproduction numbers tend to 1 and the reason could be behavioural,
VoxEU, voxeu.org
How Japan’s Universal Health Care System Led to COVID-19 Success, The
Diplomat, thediplomat.com
2. Response and Recovery
Rebuilding Cities Better in the Post-Covid-19 World, Asia Global Institute,
www.asiaglobalonline.hku.hk
The national automotive industry faced with the Covid-19: Should we be
worried about the impact on the current account?, Policy Center For The
New South, www.policycenter.ma
5 Pillars for a Green and Resilient Recovery from COVID-19, World
Resources Institute, www.wri.org
The End of College as We Know It?, Project Syndicate, www.project-
syndicate.org
The COVID City, Project Syndicate, www.project-syndicate.org
State and Local Governments Peer into the the Pandemic Abyss, Harvard
Business School Working Knowledge, hbswk.hbs.edu
Expert’s take: Four lessons from COVID-19 that should shape policy
decisions everywhere, UN Women, www.unwomen.org
3. COVID-19’s Workforce Impact
COVID-19 may exacerbate the digital divide among businesses, LSE
Business Review, blogs.lse.ac.uk
COVID-19 and Japan’s Mysterious ‘Night City’ District, The Diplomat,
thediplomat.com
From In Trouble to Informed, Rocky Mountain Institute, rmi.org
Reopening schools amid the coronavirus pandemic: 5 research studies to
consider, Harvard Kennedy School – Journalist’s Resource,
journalistsresource.org
Pandemic or No, It’s Business as Usual for Boards, INSEAD Knowledge,
knowledge.insead.edu
COVID-19 and the effects of social distancing on the economy, VoxEU,
voxeu.org
11 million girls may not return to school, UNESCO, www.youtube.com
4. Avoiding COVID-19 Infection and Spread
As COVID-19 Surges in South Korea, Doctors Are Furious Over
Government Training Plan, The Diplomat, thediplomat.com
How local modelling can build resilience in the post-COVID era, World
Economic Forum, www.weforum.org
6 tips on how to lead in COVID times, World Economic Forum,
www.weforum.org
The COVID Middle-Income Trap, Project Syndicate, www.project-
syndicate.org
COVID-19 and beyond: “How can social dialogue help us get through the
crisis together?”, International Labour Organization, www.youtube.com
Lockdown accounting, VoxEU, voxeu.org
WHO's Science in 5 - Herd Immunity, World Health Organization,
5. Finding a Vaccine
COVID-19 and your brain: 6 ways to control the damage to your mental
health, World Economic Forum, www.weforum.org
Internal migration and the spread of COVID-19, VoxEU, voxeu.org
From Impact to Inequality: How Post-COVID-19 government policy is
privatising research innovation, London School of Economics and Political
Science, blogs.lse.ac.uk
COVID-19 Can Wreck Your Heart, Even if You Haven't Had Any
Symptoms, Scientific American, www.scientificamerican.com
‘COVID Lessons: Invest In Basic Healthcare, Surveillance & Public Health’,
IndiaSpend, www.indiaspend.com
Mental Health and the COVID-19 Pandemic: What We Knew, What We
Now Know, and What We Still Don’t Know, Center for Global Development,
www.cgdev.org
Doctor Copper: this Canadian mining company explains how the red metal
fights COVID-19, World Economic Forum, www.weforum.org
6. COVID-19’s Impact on Trade
How the Fed will respond to the COVID-19 recession in an era of low rates
and low inflation, Brookings Institution, www.youtube.com
Conflict and Coronavirus: How COVID-19 is Impacting Southeast Asia’s
Conflicts, Pacific Forum, pacforum.org
Corruption hampers the development of South Africa’s youth, South
African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), saiia.org.za
Italy’s Lampedusa: Back on the migration front line, The New
Humanitarian, www.thenewhumanitarian.org
COVID-19 and Economic Competition with China and Russia, War on the
Rocks, warontherocks.com
Horrible trade-offs in a pandemic, VoxEU, voxeu.org
The Post-Pandemic Economy’s Barriers to Growth, Project Syndicate,
www.project-syndicate.org
Acknowledgements
Cover and selected images throughout supplied by Reuters.
Some URLs have been shortened for readability. Please follow the URL
given to visit the source of the article. A full URL can be provided on
request.
References
20
COVID-19 Briefing, September 2020

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