How effective were the COVID-19 relief measures? A comparative analysis of the seven largest economies of the world
Keywords:
COVID-19, World Economy, World Health Organization (WHO), International Labour organization (ILO), Inequality, Relief Program, GDP growth rate, Unemployment rateAbstract
This paper examines the effect of policy measures adopted by governments worldwide since the onset of the COVID-19-led pandemic on health and social sectors and the global economy. Taking the case of the United States, India, the Republic of Korea, China, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Germany, it comparatively studies the effect of pandemic and related policy measures: on the unemployment rate, GDP growth, per capita income, inequality (measured using the Gini coefficient), accumulated real income, interest rates of Central Bank of the respective countries, Relief packages as per the percentage of GDP, and Cash transfer by number of people covered of the said countries. Developing countries preferred to use direct cash transfers to the beneficiary account rather than providing food baskets as most developed countries provided to their population of the lower economic strata. Except for China, there is a contraction in the GDP of all the countries witnessed in 2020 and is set to rebound in 2021 and 2022. It is witnessed that the impact of the pandemic is uneven in different sectors, regions, and socio-economic groups; in some cases, the repercussions of these measures are likely to continue.
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