Africa UN Knowledge Hub for COVID-19

International private sector investment flows to developing and transition economies in sectors relevant for the sustainable development goals (SDGs) fell by one third in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The value of newly announced greenfield investments in relevant sectors shrunk by 33% and that of international project finance (used for large infrastructure projects requiring multiple investors) by 36%. The COVID-19 pandemic has more than undone the increase in SDG investment since 2015 – the year the SDGs were adopted.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, expectations were that seaborne trade, including containerized trade, would experience a strong downturn. However, changes in consumption and shopping patterns triggered by the pandemic, including a surge in electronic commerce, as well as lockdown measures, have in fact led to increased import demand for manufactured consumer goods, a large part of which is moved in shipping containers.

The analysis focused on the 27 top manufacturing economies listed in the July 2021 report using Airfinity data (see sankey chart). The list of inputs that were used in vaccine manufacturing were the Harmonized System (HS) six-digit codes in the Joint Indicative List of Critical COVID-19 Vaccine Inputs for Consultation2, classified into 13 product groups.

This note outlines the results of an in-house analysis carried out by DG TRADE that estimates how the reduction in economic activity following the COVID19 outbreak has affected international trade. The increasing spread of the virus has caused a significant amount of governments to introduce measures that shut down businesses temporarily and have restricted travel and the movement of people. These measures will lead to sharp contractions in the level of output, household spending, investment and international trade.

COVID-19 is a humanitarian crisis on a global scale. The virus continues to spread throughout the globe, placing health systems under unprecedented stress in the battle to save lives. The human scale of this tragedy is set to worsen as the virus spreads tolower income countries with weaker healthcare systems. In the March 2020 OECD Interim Economic Outlook, the downside scenario saw global growth halved to 1.5%. That was optimistic.

Covid-19 is a global problem to which some of the usual global solutions, like trade, can help.Trade remains a powerful, low-cost tool to improve access to medical supplies and expertise, and support economic resilience. The following recommended short, medium and longer term trade policy actions can fuel the African response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Covid-19 is a global problem to which some of the usual global solutions, like trade, can help.Trade remains a powerful, low-cost tool to improve access to medical supplies and expertise, and support economic resilience. The following recommended short, medium and longer term trade policy actions can fuel the African response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

This briefing is the outcome of several multistakeholder dialogues organized by the World Economic Forum’s Platform for Shaping the Future of Financial and Monetary Systems. Since mid-March, the Forum has virtually convened senior leaders from financial institutions, international organizations, central banks and other institutions for several discussions about the impact of COVID-19 on the financial system.

This policy brief addresses the impact of COVID-19 on global trade and the subsequent impact on employment, with an emphasis on implications for developing countries.