Inter-country Distancing, Globalisation and the Coronavirus Pandemic
Klaus F. Zimmermann, Gokhan Karabulut, Mehmet Huseyin Bilgin & Asli Cansin Doker
#2020-018
Originating in China, the Coronavirus has reached the world at different
speeds and levels of strength. This paper provides some initial
understanding of some driving factors and their consequences. Since
transmission requires people, the human factor behind globalisation is
essential. Globalisation, a major force behind global well-being and
equality, is highly associated with this factor. The analysis
investigates the impact globalisation has on the speed of initial
transmission to a country and on the size of initial infections in the
context of other driving factors. Our cross-country analysis finds that
measures of globalisation are positively related to the spread of the
virus, both in speed and size. However, the study also finds that
globalised countries are better equipped to keep fatality rates low. The
conclusion is not to reduce globalisation to avoid pandemics, but to
better monitor the human factor at the outbreak and to mobilise
collaboration forces to curtail diseases.
Keywords: Globalisation, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Pandemic, Inter-country Distancing
JEL Classification: C30, F69, I19