Why the coronavirus crisis is 'more like 1918 than 2008'

Travel, tourism and retail will see biggest impact

Forget the falling markets of 2008. The Covid-19 shock is more like the flu pandemic of 1918.

Exploring the similarities between then and now provides clues as to how the current pandemic may develop and affect different sectors of the global economy. GFC was a balance sheet recession  However bad this crisis is, it is not the Great Financial Crisis (GFC). The GFC was a balance sheet recession triggered by a collapsing housing sector and a dearth of confidence in banks. Housing is the biggest source of consumer wealth with a value of about $11trn, so big price falls or lending squeezes can trigger structural slowdowns. There have been only two housing busts in the US in r...