Could a Return to Lockdown Cripple Our Economy?

The unwelcome surge of the delta variant of COVID-19 has already led to the reintroduction of some pandemic restrictions. In our webinar Rocket or Rollercoaster: Where Will the Markets Go From Here?, Chief Investment Officer Jim Lowell gave our take on whether another round of lockdowns could cripple our economy.

Please enjoy the excerpt below and click here for the full webinar replay to hear more.

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Jim Lowell

We’re already seeing a resurgence in coronavirus cases thanks to the delta variant here in the US, and the CDC is responding with some alacrity in terms of instituting new mask-wearing mandates. Unlike last year, however, we’ve got a vaccine that we know works, defends, dramatically curtails mortality and hospitalization rates among those who are vaccinated. In that sense, we’re far better prepared than we were last year. Clearly, however, we need to do more and better here to communicate about those benefits to those who are not vaccinated.

Globally, there are some economies still struggling with the previous rounds COVID-19, let alone the delta variant. And even in places that have a high vaccination rate, like the UK, the delta variant is creeping in. We know that’s going to have impact on travel, and we already saw the US effectively extend their ban on travel to Europe and elsewhere because of the delta variant.

But we think that overall, companies, our economy, our politicians and our medical professionals are in significantly better shape than they were this time a year ago. If there are further lockdowns, we think they’re likely to be hyper-localized, temporary bumps in our progress towards the ability to move about the country significantly more freely and move about the world with a big post-COVID smile on our face.