China’s limited recovery from the coronavirus (COVID-19) has encouraged confidence in containment measures, International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials said in a Monday blog post.
The post was written by three officials from the IMF’s Research Department: Gita Gopinath, Director of the Department; John Bluedorn, Deputy Division Chief for World Economic Outlook (WEO); and Damiano Sandri, Deputy Division Chief for World Economic Studies.
The officials added that China’s example illustrates that the preventative measures are effective in controlling the pandemic, and pave the way for a resumption of economic activity.
The IMF officials added, however, that there is huge uncertainty over the pandemic’s future path, and a resurgence of its spread in China and other countries cannot be ruled out.
To overcome the pandemic, the world needs a universal, coordinated health and economic policy effort, officials mentioned. They added that the IMF, in collaboration with other partners, is doing everything it can to ensure rapid support is available to impacted countries. This has been through emergency steps such as financing, policy advice, and technical assistance.
Further details on the economic impact of the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic will be made public when the IMF releases its WEO on 14 April, they added.
