Europeans distrustful about Covid-19 vaccines – leading macroeconomic influencers
Vaccine challengers have existed since vaccines were introduced. Economists believe that anti-vaccine sentiments and resistance against the newly developed coronavirus vaccines could hamper the uptake and fight against the Covid-19 disease.
Konstantina Beleli
Konstantina Beleli, an economist, re-tweeted an article on how many Europeans are sceptical about the Covid-19 vaccines. According to an economist article, despite clinical trials revealing the safety and efficacy of coronavirus vaccines, a number of people in Europe remain hesitant about being administered with the newly developed vaccines, thereby making the fight against the Covid-19 disease even more difficult.
According to a sample survey by Ipsos Mori, approximately 46% of the French, highest among other Europeans, and more than 40% of Poles and Hungarians refuse to be vaccinated with the coronavirus vaccines.
A number of conspiracy theories are also black painting the new coronavirus vaccines, calling them Bill Gates’ efforts to insert chips into the body, the article noted. Economists believe that while the 18th and 19th century reactions against vaccines were mainly religious, today’s resistance against the vaccines is due to political reasons.
As elites fear and distrust the new generation of Covid vaccines, politicians believe that people will eventually agree to get vaccinated in countries like France and Italy. Governments will have to bolster their Covid-19 vaccination programmes, to the effect that they are carried out smoothly and effectively, the article noted.
Economist: Πολλοί Ευρωπαίοι είναι σκεπτικιστές για τα εμβόλια Covid-19 https://t.co/lSDcxONmE9
— Καθημερινή Κύπρου (@Kathimerini_Cy) December 13, 2020
Steve Keen
Steve Keen, an economist, re-tweeted an article on how economists, politicians, and develop nations are getting everything wrong about the climate change, Covid-19 crisis, and the economic meltdown. In his views, the world is even less prepared to deal with the global climate crisis ahead of it, compared to what it was for the 2007 global financial crisis.
Economists suggest that Ann Pettitfor’s book ‘The Coming First World Debt Crisis’ was the first to warn of the 2007 Global Financial Crisis, the article noted. However, a decade since it began, the burden of excessive private debt still exists. Additionally, the world is now gripped with the pandemic, and the urgent need to address the climate change.
Keen believes that mainstream economists have ignored the signs of the approaching global financial crisis and the coronavirus health emergency. However, climate change needs to be dealt with differently, and hence, mainstream economists should be ignored.
Market mechanisms suggested by mainstream economists will not be able to cope with the climate crisis just as they have proved to be ineffective for the Covid-19 crisis. Therefore, war-time measures such as carbon rationing and government funding into efforts such as a Green New Deal are likely to help sustain the economy, the article detailed.
Economists and politicians in developed nations keep getting things wrong: Climate change, COVID, the Global Financial Crisis.
Steve Keen @ProfSteveKeen
To Save the Climate – Don’t Listen to Mainstream Economistshttps://t.co/Wyo8mjRKc7@EarthlyEdu @imightbeb @peacenikmo pic.twitter.com/yaPAhYGSHN— Brave New Europe (@BRAVENEWEUROPE1) December 13, 2020
Dr Shirley Yu
Dr Shirley Yu, a political economist, re-tweeted on how China’s household debt surged by approximately $379.62bn, or almost 3.5 times than that of the US in the first six months of 2020 during the coronavirus crisis, according to data collected by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
Data further revealed that Chinese household debt as a share of the gross domestic product (GDP) stood at 59.1%, up by 3.9% in the first half of the year, and higher than most developed countries.
The pandemic has caused many people to invest in a second or third home due to inflation fears, thereby driving the property boom. Consequently, rapid expansion of investments in real estate have contributed more towards China’s economic recovery post-Covid than the recoveries made in retail sales and exports, the article noted.
China’s household debt grew at 3.5 times that of the US in the first half of 2020.
Chinese household debt/GDP hits 60%, an unprecedented level.
More on China’s debt and debt spillover post-Covid-19, check out the report. https://t.co/0CzoFihKPL
— Shirley Yu (@shirleyzeyu) December 12, 2020
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