Impact

Economics

The outbreak is a major destabilising threat to the global economy. Agathe Demarais of the Economist Intelligence Unit has forecast that markets will remain volatile until a clearer image emerges on potential outcomes. One estimate from an expert at Washington University in St. Louis gave a $300+ billion impact on the world's supply chain that could last up to two years. Global stock markets fell on 24 February due to a significant rise in the number of COVID-19 cases outside China. On 27 February, due to mounting worries about the coronavirus outbreak, U.S. stock indexes posted their sharpest falls since 2008, with the Dow falling 1,191 points (the largest one-day drop since the financial crisis of 2007–08) and all three major indexes ending the week down more than 10 percent. On 28 February, Scope Ratings GmbH affirmed China's sovereign credit rating but maintained a Negative Outlook. Stocks plunged again due to coronavirus fears, the largest fall being on 16 March.

Lloyd's of London has estimated that the global insurance industry will absorb losses of US$204 billion, exceeding the losses from the 2017 Atlantic Hurricane season and 9/11, suggesting the COVID-19 pandemic will likely go down in history as the costliest disaster ever in human history.

Tourism is one of the worst affected sectors due to travel bans, closing of public places including travel attractions, and advice of governments against travel. Numerous airlines have cancelled flights due to lower demand, and British regional airline Flybe collapsed. The cruise line industry was hard hit, and several train stations and ferry ports have also been closed. International mail between some countries stopped or was delayed due to reduced transportation between them or suspension of domestic service.

The retail sector has been impacted globally, with reductions in store hours or temporary closures. Visits to retailers in Europe and Latin America declined by 40 percent. North America and Middle East retailers saw a 50–60 percent drop. This also resulted in a 33–43 percent drop in foot traffic to shopping centres in March compared to February. Shopping mall operators around the world imposed additional measures, such as increased sanitation, installation of thermal scanners to check the temperature of shoppers, and cancellation of events.

Hundreds of millions of jobs could be lost globally. More than 40 million Americans lost their jobs and filed unemployment insurance claims. The economic impact and mass unemployment caused by the pandemic has raised fears of a mass eviction crisis, with an analysis by the Aspen Institute indicating between 30 and 40 million Americans are at risk for eviction by the end of 2020. According to a report by the Yelp, about 60% of U.S. businesses that have closed since the start of the pandemic will stay shut permanently.

According to a United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America estimate, the pandemic-induced recession could leave 14–22 million more people in extreme poverty in Latin America than would have been in that situation without the pandemic. According to the World Bank, up to 100 million more people globally could fall into extreme poverty due to the shutdowns. The International Labour Organization (ILO) informed that the income generated in first nine months of 2020 from work across the world dropped by 10.7 per cent, or $3.5 trillion, amidst the coronavirus outbreak.

Supply shortages

The outbreak has been blamed for several instances of supply shortages, stemming from globally increased usage of equipment to fight outbreaks, panic buying (which in several places led to shelves being cleared of grocery essentials such as food, toilet paper, and bottled water), and disruption to the factory and logistic operations. The spread of panic buying has been found to stem from perceived threat, perceived scarcity, fear of the unknown, coping behaviour and social psychological factors (e.g. social influence and trust). The technology industry, in particular, has warned of delays to shipments of electronic goods. According to the WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom, demand for personal protection equipment has risen a hundredfold, leading to prices up to twenty times the normal price and also delays in the supply of medical items of four to six months. It has also caused a shortage of personal protective equipment worldwide, with the WHO warning that this will endanger health workers.

The impact of the coronavirus outbreak was worldwide. The virus created a shortage of precursors (raw material) used in the manufacturing of fentanyl and methamphetamine. The Yuancheng Group, headquartered in Wuhan, is one of the leading suppliers. Price increases and shortages in these illegal drugs have been noticed on the street of the UK. U.S. law enforcement also told the New York Post Mexican drug cartels were having difficulty in obtaining precursors.

The pandemic has disrupted global food supplies and threatens to trigger a new food crisis. David Beasley, head of the World Food Programme (WFP), said "we could be facing multiple famines of biblical proportions within a short few months." Senior officials at the United Nations estimated in April 2020 that an additional 130 million people could starve, for a total of 265 million by the end of 2020.

Oil and other energy markets

In early February 2020, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) "scrambled" after a steep decline in oil prices due to lower demand from China. On Monday, 20 April, the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) went negative and fell to a record low (minus $37.63 a barrel) due to traders' offloading holdings so as not to take delivery and incur storage costs. June prices were down but in the positive range, with a barrel of West Texas trading above $20.

Culture

The performing arts and cultural heritage sectors have been profoundly affected by the pandemic, impacting organisations' operations as well as individuals—both employed and independent—globally. Arts and culture sector organisations attempted to uphold their (often publicly funded) mission to provide access to cultural heritage to the community, maintain the safety of their employees and the public, and support artists where possible. By March 2020, across the world and to varying degrees, museums, libraries, performance venues, and other cultural institutions had been indefinitely closed with their exhibitions, events and performances cancelled or postponed. In response there were intensive efforts to provide alternative services through digital platforms.

Holy Week observances in Rome, which occur during the last week of the Christian penitential season of Lent, were cancelled. Many dioceses have recommended older Christians stay home rather than attend Mass on Sundays; services have been made available via radio, online live streaming and television, though some congregations have made provisions for drive-in worship. With the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rome closing its churches and chapels and St. Peter's Square emptied of Christian pilgrims, other religious bodies also cancelled in-person services and limited public gatherings in churches, mosques, synagogues, temples and gurdwaras. Iran's Health Ministry announced the cancellation of Friday prayers in areas affected by the outbreak and shrines were later closed, while Saudi Arabia banned the entry of foreign pilgrims as well as its residents to holy sites in Mecca and Medina. The 2020 Hajj was limited to around 1,000 selected pilgrims, in contrast to the usual number of over 2 million.

The pandemic has caused the most significant disruption to the worldwide sporting calendar since the Second World War. Most major sporting events have been cancelled or postponed, including the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League, 2019–20 Premier League, UEFA Euro 2020, 2019–20 NBA season, and 2019–20 NHL season. The outbreak disrupted plans for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, which were originally scheduled to start at 24 July 2020, and were postponed by the International Olympic Committee to 23 July 2021.

The entertainment industry has also been affected, with many music groups suspending or cancelling concert tours. The Eurovision Song Contest, which was due to be held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands in May, was cancelled; however, the Netherlands was retained as host for 2021. Many large theatres such as those on Broadway also suspended all performances. Some artists have explored ways to continue to produce and share work over the internet as an alternative to traditional live performance, such as live streaming concerts or creating web-based "festivals" for artists to perform, distribute, and publicise their work. Online, numerous COVID-19-themed Internet memes have spread as many turn to humour and distraction amid the uncertainty.

Politics

The pandemic has affected the political systems of multiple countries, causing suspensions of legislative activities, isolations or deaths of multiple politicians, and rescheduling of elections due to fears of spreading the virus. Starting in late May, large-scale protests against police brutality in at least 200 U.S. cities and later worldwide in response to the killing of George Floyd raised concerns of a resurgence of the virus.

Although they have broad support among epidemiologists, social distancing measures have been politically controversial in many countries. Intellectual opposition to social distancing has come primarily from writers of other fields, although there are a few heterodox epidemiologists.

On 23 March 2020, United Nations Secretary-General António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres issued an appeal for a global ceasefire in response to the pandemic; 172 UN Member States and Observers signed a non-binding statement in support of the appeal in June, and the UN Security Council passed a resolution supporting it in July.

China

The Chinese government has been criticised by the United States government, UK Minister for the Cabinet Office Michael Gove, and others for its handling of the pandemic. A number of provincial-level administrators of the Communist Party of China were dismissed over their handling of the quarantine measures in China, a sign of discontent with their response to the outbreak. Some commentators believed this move was intended to protect Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping from the controversy. The U.S. intelligence community says China intentionally under-reported its number of coronavirus cases. The Chinese government maintains it has acted swiftly and transparently.

Italy

In early March, the Italian government criticised the European Union's lack of solidarity with coronavirus-affected Italy—Maurizio Massari, Italy's ambassador to the EU, said "only China responded bilaterally", not the EU. On 22 March, after a phone call with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, Russian president Vladimir Putin had the Russian army send military medics, disinfection vehicles, and other medical equipment to Italy. President of Lombardy Attilio Fontana and Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio expressed their gratitude for the aid. Russia also sent a cargo plane with medical aid to the United States. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said "when offering assistance to U.S. colleagues, Putin assumes that when U.S. manufacturers of medical equipment and materials gain momentum, they will also be able to reciprocate if necessary." In early April, Norway and EU states like Romania and Austria started to offer help by sending medical personnel and disinfectant, and Ursula von der Leyen offered an official apology to the country.

United States

The outbreak prompted calls for the United States to adopt social policies common in other wealthy countries, including universal health care, universal child care, paid sick leave, and higher levels of funding for public health. Political analysts believe it may have contributed to Donald Trump's loss in the 2020 presidential election. Beginning in mid-April 2020, there were protests in several U.S. states against government-imposed business closures and restricted personal movement and association. Simultaneously, protests ensued by essential workers in the form of a general strike. In early October 2020, Donald Trump and many other government officials were diagnosed with COVID-19, further disrupting the country's politics.

Other countries

The planned NATO "Defender 2020" military exercise in Germany, Poland, and the Baltic states, the largest NATO war exercise since the end of the Cold War, will be held on a reduced scale. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament's general secretary Kate Hudson criticised the exercise, saying "it jeopardises the lives not only of the troops from the U.S. and the many European countries participating but the inhabitants of the countries in which they are operating."

The Iranian government has been heavily affected by the virus, with about two dozen parliament members and fifteen current or former political figures infected. Iran's President Hassan Rouhani wrote a public letter to world leaders asking for help on 14 March 2020, saying they were struggling to fight the outbreak due to a lack of access to international markets from the United States sanctions against Iran. Saudi Arabia, which launched a military intervention in Yemen in March 2015, declared a ceasefire.

Diplomatic relations between Japan and South Korea worsened due to the pandemic. South Korea criticised Japan's "ambiguous and passive quarantine efforts" after Japan announced anyone coming from South Korea would be placed in quarantine for two weeks at government-designated sites. South Korean society was initially polarised on President Moon Jae-in's response to the crisis; many Koreans signed petitions either calling for Moon's impeachment or praising his response.

Some countries have passed emergency legislation in response to the pandemic. Some commentators have expressed concern that it could allow governments to strengthen their grip on power. In the Philippines, lawmakers granted president Rodrigo Duterte temporary emergency powers during the pandemic. In Hungary, the parliament voted to allow the prime minister, Viktor Orbán, to rule by decree indefinitely, suspend parliament as well as elections, and punish those deemed to have spread false information about the virus and the government's handling of the crisis. In some countries, including Egypt, Turkey, and Thailand, opposition activists and government critics have been arrested for allegedly spreading fake news about the COVID-19 pandemic.

Agriculture and food systems

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted agricultural and food systems worldwide. COVID-19 hit at a time when hunger or undernourishment was once again on the rise in the world, with an estimated 690 million people already going hungry in 2019. Based on the latest UN estimates, the economic recession triggered by the pandemic may lead to another 83 million people, and possibly as many as 132 million, going hungry in 2020. This is mainly due to a lack of access to food – linked to falling incomes, lost remittances and, in some cases, a rise in food prices. In countries that already suffer from high levels of acute food insecurity, it is no longer an issue of access to food alone, but increasingly also one of food production.

The pandemic, alongside lockdowns and travel restrictions, has prevented movement of aid and greatly impacted food production. As a result, several famines are forecast, which the United Nations called a crisis "of biblical proportions," or "hunger pandemic." It is estimated that without intervention 30 million people may die of hunger, with Oxfam reporting that "12,000 people per day could die from COVID-19 linked hunger" by the end of 2020. This pandemic, in conjunction with the 2019–20 locust infestations and several ongoing armed conflicts, is predicted to form the worst series of famines since the Great Chinese Famine, affecting between 10 and 20 percent of the global population in some way. 55 countries are reported to be at risk, with three dozen succumbing to crisis-level famines or above in the worst-case scenario. 265 million people are forecast to be in famine conditions, an increase of 125 million due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Education

Other health issues

Environment and climate

Xenophobia and racism

Since the start of the outbreak, heightened prejudice, xenophobia, and racism have been documented around the world toward people of Chinese and East Asian descent. Reports from February (when most cases were confined to China) documented racist sentiments expressed in groups worldwide about Chinese people 'deserving' the virus. Chinese people and other Asian in the United Kingdom and United States have reported increasing levels of racist abuse and assaults. U.S. President Donald Trump has been criticised for referring to the coronavirus as the "Chinese Virus" and "Kung Flu", which has been widely condemned as racist and xenophobic. On 14 March, an Asian family, including a two-year-old girl, was attacked at knifepoint in Texas in what the FBI has called a COVID-19 related hate crime.

Following the progression of the outbreak to new hotspot countries, people from Italy (the first country in Europe to experience a serious outbreak of COVID-19) were also subjected to suspicion and xenophobia, as were people from hotspots in other countries. Discrimination against Muslims in India escalated after public health authorities identified an Islamic missionary (Tablighi Jamaat) group's gathering in New Delhi in early March 2020 as a source of spread. Paris has seen riots break out over police treatment of ethnic minorities during the coronavirus lockdown. Racism and xenophobia towards southern and south east Asians increased in the Arab states of the Persian Gulf. South Korea's LGBTQ community was blamed by some for the spread of COVID-19 in Seoul. In China, some people of African descent were evicted from their homes and told to leave China within 24 hours, due to disinformation that they and other foreigners were spreading the virus. This racism and xenophobia was criticised by foreign governments and diplomatic corps and the Chinese ambassador to Zimbabwe.