The arrival of COVID-19 has caused the greatest disruption in the global economy since World War 2. It has exposed significant weaknesses in the modern day global economy and in the healthcare systems to respond to such a pandemic.

This article is going to focus on the impact that COVID-19 is having on the national debt, both globally and nationally and on corporations as well as the potential implications of the latter, especially as we do not know how long COVID-19 will be with us or when an effective vaccine will be proven out, distributed and administered.

At this stage in the pandemic we can point to actualities. The International Monetary Fund estimates that public debt as a percentage of GDP will rise above 130% in 2020 and 2021. It will exceed levels only seen during and after World War 2. Global debt is close to 331% of GDP or a staggering $258 Trillion and in more mature markets it is estimated to be as high as 393% of GDP. These numbers are hard to digest. Britain's national debt for example is forecasted to be at 418% of GDP in 2070. Only 4 years ago economists were forecasting it would be 87%.

With so much economic and health risk in the new COVID-19 era, most people in the 50 and over category (especially those with serious pre-existing conditions) are thinking about their retirement plans, income and nest eggs as well as their Will, Trust and legacy to their next of kin.

You may be asking yourself questions such as:

Is my will and trust up to date? Is it optimized and compliant with the latest tax changes and laws?

Getting riled up and down or worrying about the markets - all the time - is not a healthy way to live, most people would agree. All Markets go in cycles, and given enough time and providing that you are well diversifed, the markets have proven out over more than a couple of hundred years that they will weather the most harsh storms and continue to grow over the long term. Growth is not a straight line. A long protracted bear market scenario is of course serious but no-one is expecting that to be the outcome of the coronavirus crisis. Yes, it may take longer than any one of us may like to discover an effective vaccine and administer it, but this will eventually happen. An enormous ammount of resources and scientifc brain power is being allocated to the discovery, manufacturing and distribution of a vaccine in every country worldwide. And despite global tensions among super-powers, scientists are collaborating on a global scale.

We will get through this time. Business conditions and markets will improve and likewise employment numbers will rise again. There will also be significant hardship faced by many who are unemployed and we can but hope that governments will continue to find ways to ease their burden until the employment situation can get back to pre-coronavirus levels.

A good reason to get a financial advisor is that they will do the worrying and managing of your investment portfolio for you. They will be more objective in times of crisis and able to provide advice that will help steer you in the right direction and away from doing anything that might worsen your situation.

What Is the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH)? Is it True or False, Half-True or Half-False?

Global tensions between the USA and China were already a "thing" prior to the Coronavirus rearing its ugly head. However, in a post-coronavirus world that has severely impacted economies, supply chains and trade, the sheer extent to which countries - in particular the USA - are dependent on vital goods such as key ingredients for pharmaceuticals, medical equipments and auto-parts for example, has been highlighted in dramatic fashion. Significant sectors of US industry have sacrificed "price advantages" over "security" in a long established US led transition of exporting manufacturing and jobs to China.

In a world where China and American trade relations may continue to sour and worsen, such dependency can no longer be viewed as a smart play. China has never been viewed as a fair player. They play to win at all costs. The mis-handling of the coronavirus outbreak has not endeared China to the world. The US which has suffered the worst impact of the coronavirus worldwide and where the governement was slow to take it seriously, has decided to blame the WHO (World Health Organization) for not being more circumspect about what was happening in China and more suspect about information regarding the outbreak and therefore wasting precious time.

The US pulled its funding from the WHO much to the chagrin of its allies while China was more than happy to cough up a couple of billion dollars to plug the funding gap and win more favor. An investigation is now underway within the WHO. It's fair to say that very few countries were prepared for a pandemic. It was never a matter of "if' but "when" and most of the world chose to ignore the matter of preparedness. That changes only in the instance of a pandemic hitting and by the time that happened - as we have all witnessed - it was already too late.