Poll: Doomsday
“What represents the biggest threat to the global economy?”
- 69% Coronavirus pandemic
- 13% Climate change
- 9%: Debt
- 5%: Fake news cyberattacks
- 4%: Social media apathy
Yes, it’s hard to see past the lethal, invisible mass pathogen spreading the world like a bat out of hell. Markets have never faced anything of the sort. That’s why volatility has gone through the roof, markets gaining and losing thousands of points every other day.
If the Invstr community believes the coronavirus is the biggest short-term threat to the global economy, it would be right. However, summer always follows winter, immune systems adapt, and the incentives for smart pharmacists to save the world are strong. Longer-term, climate change is harder to stop.
To reference the British Government’s Stern Review, global gross domestic product could lose several per cent as world powers struggle to contain extreme weather events. Food supply disruptions are expected, and trillions of dollars could depart “sin stocks” as investors vilify the culprits of dirty energy generation.
If our climate does change for the worse, it will happen slowly. We’re in a slow cooker. That would take the edge off market damage until one day the intangible effects become too much to bear for numbers-driven investors. To keep that day away, vote carefully and consume mindfully!
9% of the Invstr community saw doubtful debts as the elephant in the room. It’s never been easier to get a loan, as evidenced by today’s for-profit non-profits like Uber, Tesla, and Tilray. Those companies are still in the game, and that would probably surprise a time-travelling investor from previous business cycles.
Invstrs are almost completely agreed that none of these doomsday scenarios aren’t getting enough screen time. Speculation about how the world will end is the oxygen for social media. However, if judgement day does come for the global economy, mounting household debt and consumer debt could make it a double-whammy. Hold tight!
