The economic impact of Covid-19 and subsequent debt relief policies

Our research project examines the economic effects of Covid-19 and subsequent debt and credit relief policies along the value chain. Our project examines the effects on the micro to small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) along the value chain as well as on households by relying on state-of the art methods. As the unprecedented health and economic shock hit first China, we focus on such a context also given the importance of the Chinese economy for the rest of the world. It is important to mention that the Chinese government has been very quick to react both from the health but also from the economic angle. We are examining the economic impact by focusing first on the universe of clients of one of the largest supply chain financial institutions. This is one of the largest financial providers for micro, small and medium size enterprises in the agricultural and industrial sector in China. The financial institution serves millions of supply chain micro, small and medium-size businesses. Second, we are going to carry out a survey in order to examine the economic effects on households.