Also known as COVID-19, coronavirus has significantly changed the whole world. Political, economic, social, and health care spheres witness essential adverse effects, while both developed and developing nations suffer from the pandemic. This state of affairs demonstrates that it will take much time and effort to recover from this situation. Thus, the given paper is going to suppose what future challenges COVID-19 will offer to the world.
To begin with, one should state that coronavirus is going to lead to a reduction in output that is unparalleled since the Great Depression in the 1930s. In the Western world, numerous developed countries are likely to see their GDP fall. According to Elliot, this economic indicator is expected to fall by more than 4% all over the globe. This forecast denotes that the world will have to deal with a financial crisis once it defeats the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Great Depression and the modern problem are not limited to the economy.
The information above stipulates the coronavirus cannot but influence the manufacturing sector, including the means of production. Various containment measures have resulted in the fact that numerous factories are idle all over the world. A shortage of labor force results in the case that businesses do not manufacture their products as it was a few months before. As a result, it is possible to expect the disruption of supplies of some goods. In addition to that, one should comment on how coronavirus has impacted raw materials. For example, it is impossible to ignore the unprecedented oil price downturn. Consequently, it will be challenging for the economic and manufacturing spheres to overcome the adverse effects of the pandemic.
While the information above has revealed negative consequences, it is possible to suppose that some countries will manage to benefit from the given crisis. Even though it can sound surprising, China is expected to benefit from the COVID-19 pandemic with the help of its mercantilism. It relates to the fact that this country tries to teach other nations how it is more useful to combat coronavirus. This strategy shows that China wants to strengthen its international position by providing assistance to suffering states. Chinese self-interest is found in the fact that the nation does not admit its guilt in spreading the disease throughout the world.
However, there is also another opinion that China will witness some negative consequences. It refers to a belief that world panic is artificially intensified by Anglo-Saxons to get control over China. This situation is similar to the 19th-century opium wars when the British Empire spread opium to defeat China and get access to its ports. Now, coronavirus hysteria can be used by international organizations to make the given country open its industrial zones to foreign actors. However, there is no solid reasoning behind this conspiracy theory.
In conclusion, it is impossible to deny the fact that coronavirus is modifying the modern world, and the worst point is that it is challenging to predict all these changes. On the one hand, it is known for sure that the economic and manufacturing fields will witness essential problems. Thus, it is not a coincidence that COVID-19 is compared to the Great Depression. On the other hand, it is complicated to guess how the current situation will be used by China because there exist two different opinions regarding this issue.
Work Cited
Elliot, Larry. “‘Great Lockdown’ to rival Great Depression with 3% hit to global economy, says IMF.” The Guardian, 2020.