Macroeconomic Outcomes and COVID-19: A Progress Report

Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde and Charles Jones

No 28004, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: This paper combines data on GDP, unemployment, and Google's COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports with data on deaths from COVID-19 to study the macroeconomic outcomes of the pandemic. We present results from an international perspective using data at the country level as well as results for individual U.S. states and key cities throughout the world. The data from these different levels of geographic aggregation offer a remarkably similar view of the pandemic despite the substantial heterogeneity in outcomes. Countries like Korea, Japan, Germany, and Norway and cities such as Tokyo and Seoul have comparatively few deaths and low macroeconomic losses. At the other extreme, New York City, Lombardy, the United Kingdom, and Madrid have many deaths and large macroeconomic losses. There are fewer locations that seem to succeed on one dimension but suffer on the other, but these include California and Sweden. The variety of cases potentially offers useful policy lessons regarding how to use non-pharmaceutical interventions to support good economic and health outcomes.

JEL-codes: E10 E32 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020-10
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dem and nep-mac
Note: EFG
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (40)

Published as Jesús Fernández-Villaverde & Charles I. Jones, 2020. "Macroeconomic Outcomes and COVID-19: A Progress Report," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, vol 2020(3), pages 111-166.

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Journal Article: Macroeconomic Outcomes and COVID-19: A Progress Report (2020)
Working Paper: Macroeconomic Outcomes and COVID-19: A Progress Report (2020)
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