COVID-19 and Its Impact on Global Small Business

©iStock/Feodora Chiosea

The SME Competitiveness Outlook 2020 analyses the impact of the global pandemic on small firms, international supply chains and trade. It provides projections and a 15-point action plan for businesses, policymakers and business support organizations to weather the crisis – and gear up for a ‘new normal’ that needs to be resilient, digital, inclusive and sustainable.

The report, "COVID-19:  The Great Lockdown and Its Impact on Small Businesses," combines analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on firms based on a large-scale global survey, with case studies and a thought leader viewpoint. The projected drop in supply chain trade is evaluated by region, and in 85 country profiles.

Two things to keep in mind as you go through this very thorough report:  It's dated June, 2020 (a lot has changed since then) and the analysis is 147 pages long (excluding Endnotes).  

The Great Lockdown According to Gita Gopinath, IMF

©iStock/LewisTsePuiLung

As a result of COVID-19, the global economy is projected to contract sharply by –3 percent in 2020, much worse than during the 2008–09 financial crisis.

Gita Gopinath, Economic Counsellor at the International Monetary Fund says:

This crisis is like no other. First, the shock is large.  The output loss associated with this health emergency and related containment measures likely dwarfs the losses that triggered the global financial crisis. Second, like in a war or a political crisis, there is continued severe uncertainty about the duration and intensity of the shock. Third, under current circumstances there is a very different role for economic policy.

Read more from the International Monetary Fund on the nature of the pandemic shock:

• Foreword by Gita Gopinath
• Executive Summary
• Blog post
• Chapters (for example, Chapter 1:  Global Prospects and Policies)
• Statistical Appendixes
• Growth Projections Table

Which can all be found here.

Gita Gopinath is the Economic Counsellor and Director of the Research Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). She is on leave of public service from Harvard University’s Economics department where she is the John Zwaanstra Professor of International Studies and of Economics.