Unmasking the Impact of COVID-19 on Businesses : Firm Level Evidence from Across the World

Apedo-Amah, Marie Christine ; Avdiu, Besart ; Cirera, Xavier ; Cruz, Marcio ; Davies, Elwyn ; Grover, Arti ; Iacovone, Leonardo ; Kilinc, Umut ; Medvedev, Denis ; Maduko, Franklin Okechukwu ; Poupakis, Stavros ; Torres, Jesica ; Tran, Trang Thu

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: COVID-19;    FIRM PERFORMANCE;    EMPLOYMENT;    SALES REVENUE;    UNCERTAINTY;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-9434
RP-ID  :  WPS9434

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

This paper provides a comprehensiveassessment of the short-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemicon businesses worldwide with a focus on developingcountries. The results are based on a novel data setcollected by the World Bank Group and several partnerinstitutions in 51 countries covering more than 100,000businesses. The paper provides several stylized facts.First, the COVID-19 shock has been severe and widespreadacross firms, with persistent negative impact on sales.Second, the employment adjustment has operated mostly alongthe intensive margin (that is leave of absence and reductionin hours), with a small share of firms laying off workers.Third, smaller firms are disproportionately facing greaterfinancial constraints. Fourth, firms are increasinglyrelying on digital solutions as a response to the shock.Fifth, there is great uncertainty about the future,especially among firms that have experienced a larger dropin sales, which is associated with job losses. Thesefindings provide a better understanding of the magnitude anddistribution of the shock, the main channels affectingbusinesses, and how firms are adjusting. The paper concludesby discussing some avenues for future research.