“From Virus to Vitamin” – Join the discussion

The Observatoire de la Finance intends to seize this period of pandemic to step back and take a fresh look at our global economic system, dare to ask new questions which the current crisis brings to the fore and propose innovative ways to rebuild a more resilient and sustainable economy and society. In brief, we want to turn the virus into a vitamin for the future. 

Our Discussion Board “From Virus to Vitamin” focuses on commenting issues relevant to finance and economy in relations to society, ethics and the environment from a variety of perspectives, of practical experiences and of academic disciplines. It has been designed to share and discuss information and opinions expressed in a short and concise manner.

Contributors (Discover the list of contributors) are invited to react on a question/issue that is submitted in parallel to a limited group of experts. This happens on a regular basis, through a dedicated mailing list. After the deadline for submission, the reactions are edited and published with signatures in one document on the website of the Observatoire de la finance and on its Linkedin page. If you would like to join the discussion, you may send an email to the editor, Dr. Virgile Perret <perret@obsfin.ch>.

OF Discussion Board – Questions addressed so far

• Question 7 (ongoing) : While trade tensions grow, WTO predicts a  sharp fall in world trade for 2020 and 2021, with strong impacts on developing countries. For decades there used to be an intellectual and political consensus that free-trade contributes to growth and development of all involved. This consensus seems to belong to the past. What kind of international trade, and trade governance, does the world need?
  
• Question 6 : Staggering amounts of money start pouring on Western economies in order to keep the economic machine working and to avoid massive social shocks and unrests. How will this effort be financed? First step is clear: public bodies will issue debt and borrow on the markets, while central banks will pump liquidity to make the deals easier. The second step is less clear: what should the governments do to allocate these massive amounts: give away by distributing to the affected households or enterprises (helicopter money); lend them and ultimately either enforce the service and reimbursement conditions or cancel the debt; or should they provide equity to enterprises as would do an equity (sovereign?) fund, and expect future dividends – and for the big enterprises the stock price hikes – to cover, in due time, the incurred expenses?
• Question 5  : In response to the crisis, the resilience of the “domestic/household economy” proved essential for many despite the fact that this activity is not monetized and remains “invisible” for official statistics. What economic policy recommendations should be drawn from this experience ?
• Question 4  : In pandemic times the world operates thanks to GAFAs and telecoms. These giant enterprises are becoming every day more clearly the backbone of our economic, social, and political lives, which makes them players of systemic and global importance. How will/should evolve their future regulation at national and global levels? What are the rationales behind? 
• Question 3 : What would you suggest as priority actions to reach out to the most exposed to the economic aftermath of the pandemic crisis in developing countries?
  
• Question 2 : What principles should guide us in striking the balance between « lives and livelihoods »? Or put differently, between health and GDP?
• Question 1 : How has the virus crisis affected your basic convictions about economy and society?