Last December, the
New York Times published an op-ed titled “The People Who Actually Had a Pretty Great Year”, discussing the Americans who haven’t really been impacted by the economic downturn, and have even seen their bank balances rise. It’s food for thought on the impact of Covid-19 on the United States. Has it really been that painless for an entire section of the population?
First of all, it’s worth remembering that whenever a new recession hits, economists go back to singing their ABCs when discussing the future shape of the recovery. The Covid-19 crisis in the United States is no exception. As always, the most optimistic have been dreaming (and still are) of a V-shaped recovery, bouncing back just as quickly as it dropped. Others fear that repeated lockdowns will cause a W-shaped recovery, rising only to fall again when new restrictions are imposed.