The Economics of COVID-19 Pandemic: Assessing the Macroeconomic Impact

The Economics of COVID-19 Pandemic: Assessing the Macroeconomic Impact

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-COV-19) is a viral respiratory disease that emerged at the end of 2019, leading to devastating economic consequences globally and significant financial losses. The main objective of this thesis is to comprehensively analysis the macroeconomic impacts of COVID-19 with a primary focus on OECD countries. The motivation for this study is rooted in profound shifts in macroeconomic variables and policy measurers due to the coronavirus outbreaks. Therefore, the overall purpose is to identify the implications of unprecedented economic shocks such as a pandemic, and to develop strategies to navigate the economic challenges these shock pose, focusing on both immediate and long-term effects. This thesis, structured as a PhD thesis by publication, comprises six research articles including a systematic literature review. Data was collected from the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT), the International Monetary Fund database and Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) database at fortnightly and quarterly intervals for OECD countries. Initially, a systematic, PRISMA-guided literature review is conducted to better understand COVID-19's economic implications and identify gaps in the existing literature. Subsequent studies examine fiscal and monetary policy changes, evaluate the efficacy of government strategies to combat the impacts of the pandemic, conduct a cost analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic, and assess the macroeconomic impact of vaccinations in relation to various macroeconomic factors, providing valuable policy insights . The results of the six studies reveal that: (1) the pandemic has behaved as a systematic shock on macroeconomic variables, (2) it is imperative to expand fiscal support during pandemics, even amid low tax revenue and high creditworthiness, (3) swiftly transitioning patterns of monetary policy measures in response to economic shocks like pandemics are important, (4) income support, debt relief facilities and stringent government standards are associated with reduced infection and death rates, (5) an inpatient's per-day unit cost is estimated to be AUD 836, with the hospital bed occupancy rate being a highly significant proxy for the cost of a COVID-19 patient, and (6) COVID-19 vaccinations are associated with an increase in economic growth and a reduction in both price levels and unemployment. Overall, accurate macroeconomic policy decisions, enhanced income support, and debt relief, combined with enforcing strict public health guidelines and ensuring a safe environment for workers and customers, along with proper healthcare cost management and efficient distribution and administration of vaccines, can foster a resilient and sustainable economic recovery.

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