As coronavirus / covid-19 continues to infect people across the globe. The number of UK coronavirus cases grows and the death toll has exceeded 1'000 in the UK alone. This video examines the impact of the virus and looks at our attempts to return to some form of normality.

The five economic effects of coronavirus are many and varied. For this video I subdivided them into five POINTS

1. Economic Slowdown
This crisis is bigger in size and scope than the dot com bubble and the 2008 housing collapse combined. Vast portions of the economy have been undermined by this coronavirus scare. Many businesses have closed completely. Travel is banned. Distilleries and engineering firms have had to repurpose their operations to meet Government demands for alcohol sanitiser and ventilators. The list is endless.

2. Collapse of the Airline Industry
This results mainly from travel restrictions. Donald Trump has imposed a ban in travel from Europe which will be reviewed after 30 days. PLANES ARE GROUNDED THROUGHOUT EUROPE. Many will say this was inevitable. Aviation is a volatile sector which can be disrupted by many unforeseen events including terrorist attacks, public health emergencies, sudden downturns. They also can’t predict who is going to fly even a few weeks beyond the present day. Trump promises to extend liquidity to US airlines to prevent them from going bust. Analysts predict a fall in global passenger revenue in 2020 of between 63 and 253 billion dollars. It’s very interesting to note that many of these businesses are calling for injections of cash from their government in order to survive, notably Virgin or Delta, with Branson requesting a government cash injection of close to £7bn. But any money the government has it either takes from you, or has to borrow.

3. Growth of the State
The coronavirus outbreak has caused many Governments, particularly in socialist economies of Europe, to increase borrowing. The UK chancellor Rishi Sunak for example has announced plans to pay for up to 2 weeks of sick pay for workers and to eliminate business rates and PAYE taxes up to the first £3000. Which begs the question how will this borrowing be paid for? Boris Johnson has also pledged that the NHS will receive whatever funding is necessary for the eradication of this virus. This sum takes the overall debt burden of the United Kingdom well over the £2tn mark. The money borrowed will need to be repaid by future generations who were not alive to be able to vote on the spending. The UK could be spending up to £1tn per year. And when the interest rates do return to higher levels in the not too distant future, this is likely to lead to interest rate expenditures far higher than anyone’s ability to repay. As the dam breaks open people will see the government’s foolish mismanagement of our finances for what they and maybe this will lead to a smaller state eventually if government collapses. But it’s unlikely

4. Shutdown of Protests
Threats of prison and fines are making the news everywhere. Governments are enforcing 14 day quarantines and self isolation, which are important for minimising onward transmissions, but prevent people from going about their normal everyday activities. Already the coronavirus has been used to close down protests in Hong Kong and Downing Street is invoking the Civil Contingencies Act of 2004 to suspend large public gatherings. Bernie is running again and his supporters may wish to exercise the right to protest if he is denied the nomination. We may expect clashes between public and law enforcement. There may be civil unrest if Governments restrict peoples' freedoms excessively.

5. Currency Replacement
This is something that will become a bigger topic of conversation in the future but the BoE has just released a key document. What is the purpose of this? Why release a document about a central bank digital currency if there is no problem with the existing financial system? The Bank of England claims that CBDC or "central bank digital currency" would be an electronic store of central bank money that could be used by households and businesses to pay for things. They would probably declare it to "be risk free". Back in 1933, FDR's gold confiscation meant private owners were obliged to take their coins, bars or gold certificates to a bank, and exchange them for dollars at the prevailing rate of $20.67 per ounce. The banks were shut, on the verge of collapse. The government, too, after close-fought elections, was struggling to cover its debt repayments. Mass unemployment threatened civil unrest. The radical and shocking solution was to grab private wealth, and use it to try and reboot the system. Is history repeating? What's the way out this time?

So what do you think? Which of these economic effects is the most significant?

Let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for watching
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