Մասնակից:Ռիմա Մանասերյան/Ավազարկղ

Կորոնավիրուսային համավարակով (COVID-19 pandemic) պայմանավորված տնտեսական ցնցումները ունեցավ լայնածավալ և լուրջ ազդեցություն ֆինանսական շուկաների վրա՝ ներառյալ ֆոնդային, պարտատոմսերի և ապրանքային (ներառյալ հում նավթի և ոսկու) շուկաները: Հիմնական իրադարձությունները ընդգրկեցին Ռուսաստանի և Սաուդյան Արաբյիայի միջև նավթի գնով պայմանավորված պատերազմը, ինչը չհաջողելով հասցնել Նավթ արտահանող երկրների կազմակերպության համաձայնագրի կնքմանը, հանգեցրեց հում նավթի գների անկման և ֆոնդային բորսայի վթարի 2020 թվականի մարտ ամսին: Շուկաների վրա ունեցած ազդեցությունը կորոնավիրուսային համավարակի ազդեցության մի մասն է և ընդգրկված է բազմաթիվ տնտեսական հետևանքների մեջ:

Ֆինանսական ռիսկ և երկրի ռիսկ

Եվրոպայում և ԱՄՆ-ում կորոնավիրուսով պայմանավորված սահմանափակումները տնտեսագետները, վարկային և երկրի ռիսկի փորձագետները փորձեցին փոխել իրենց գնահատականները ճգնաժամի հետեւանքով առաջացած աննախադեպ աշխարհատնտեսական խնդիրների լույսի ներքո: Համաշխարհային կենսաթոշակային խորհրդի (World Pensions Council) տնօրեն եւ Համաշխարհային բանկի գլոբալ ենթակառուցվածքային հիմնադրամի խորհրդատվական խորհրդի անդամ Մ. Նիկոլաս Ֆիրցլին դա անվանում է "մեծ ֆինանսական ճգնաժամ" եւ ասում, որ այն բացահայտում է բազմաթիվ զսպող ֆինանսական եւ աշխարհաքաղաքական դիսֆունկցիաներ:

Մինչ այժմ, միակ եվրոպական երկրները, որ ստիպված են կարճաժամկետ վաճառքի արգելք սահմանել, Իտալիան է, Իսպանիան և Ֆրանիսան՝ ԵՄ չորս ամենախոշոր տնտեսություններից երեքը Ըստ նրա, Մադրիդի, Միլանի և Փարիզի ֆինանսական խոցելիությունը պայմանավորված է աշխարհատնտեսական իրադրության անտեսված լինելու հանգամանքով, ինչը առաջիկա օրերին առաջին պլան դուրս գալ: Ըստ ՏՀԶԿ ստանդարտների, Իսպանիան, Իտալիան և Ֆրանսիան ունեն շատ թույլ կենսաթոշակային ակտիվների բազա: Նրանց ընդհանուր կենսաթոշակային ունեցվածքը ավելի քան 15 անգամ ավելի քիչ է, քան Մեծ Բրիտանիայինը և Ավստրալիայինն է: Ինչպես այսօր, այնպես էլ ճգնաժամի ընթացքում ֆինանսական շուկաներում չկային կանխիկ դրամով հարուստ պարտատոմսերի և բաժնետոմսերի վերջնական գնորդներ: Արդյունքում կտուժի նրանց ազգային տնտեսությունը, իսկ քաղաքական ինքնիշխանությունը կարող է լրջորեն խաթարվել:

Ըստ Տնտեսական համագործակցության և զարգացման կազմակերպության (ՏՀԶԿ), տարբեր երկրներում գործող բազմաթիվ ընկերություններ ունեն մեծածավալ պարտքեր, մինչդեռ փոխառություններ ցածր արժեքը և դրամավարկային մեղմ քաղաքականությունը հանգեցրին կազմակերպությունների պարտքի ձևավորման:

Հետևաբար, Մեծ Քսանյակի (G20) անդամ երկրներից շատերում կորպորատիվ պարտքը շատ բարձր մակարդակի վրա է: Բացի այդ, առավել ցածր տոկոսադրույքով փոխառություններ թողարկվում էին BBB պարտատոմսերի, ոչ ներդրումային դասի պարտատոմսերի տեսքով, և վարկային միջոցների ծավալն աճել է, իսկ ՏՀԶԿ-ն զգուշացնում է, որ ձեռնարկությունները այլ ընտրություն չեն ունենա, քան ծախսերի և զբաղվածության կրճատումը՝ դիմագրավելու անվճարունակության ճնշումը:

Միջազգային և ազգային մակարդակներում, ինչպես նշել է ֆինանսական շուկաների ավստրիական վարչության ղեկավար Հելմուտ Էտլը՝ տնտեսության և շրջակա միջավայրի վրա կորոնավիրուսային համավարակի շարունակական ազդեցությունը գնահատելու համար չկան հուսալի տվյալներ, քանի որ ճգնաժամի այս տեսակն աննախադեպ է: Կազմակերպությունները, որոնք մինչ ճգնաժամը արդեն իսկ ֆինանսապես թույլ էին, այժմ առավել քան անկայուն են: Ըստ Էտլի՝ այն, ինչ հայտնի է, այն է, որ ճգնաժամը կլինի ավելի խորը:

Ֆոնդային բորսա

Հիմնական հոդված՝ 2020 stock market crash

Movement of the Dow Jones Industrial Average between December 2019 and March 2020, showing the all-time high in February, and the crash in February and March during the COVID-19 pandemic

2020թ. փետրվարի 24-ին՝ երկուշաբթի օրը, Դոու-Ջոնսի արդյունաբերական ցուցանիշը և FTSE 100 ցուցանիշը նվազեցին ավելի քան 3%-ով, քանի որ շաբաթվա վերջին օրերին կորոնավիրուսի բռնկումը տարածվեց նաև Չինաստանի սահմաններից դուրս: Նշվածին հետևում է Ասիայից հետո նաև Եվրոպական մայրցամաքում հիմնական ցուցանիշների կտրուկ անկումը: DAX, CAC40 և IBEX 35 ցուցանիշներից յուրաքանչյուրի անկումը կազմեց մոտ 4%, իսկ FTSE MIB ցուցանիշը՝ ավելի քան 5%: Նվազեց նաև նավթի գինը, իսկ ոսկու գինը բավականին աճեց՝ մինչև 7 տարվա առավելագույն ցուցանիշ: Փետրվարի 27-ին, կորոնավիրուսի բռնկման կապակցությամբ աճող անհանգստության պատճառով, ԱՄՆ ֆոնդային բորսայի տարբեր ինդեքսներ՝ ներառյալ NASDAQ-100-ը, S&P 500 Index-ը, Դոու-Ջոնսի արդյունաբերական ցուցանիշը, արտացոլեցին 2008 թվականից ի վեր իրենց ամենասրընթաց անկումը՝ արձանագրելով Դոու-Ջոնսի ցուցանիշը 1.191 կետով անկում՝ 2008թ. ֆինանսական ճգնաժամից հետո մեկօրյա կտրվածքով իր ամենամեծ անկումը: 2020թ. փոտրվարի 28-in, ամբողջ աշխարհում ֆոնդային բորսաները հաղորդեցին 2008 թվականի ֆինանսական ճգնաժամից հետո տեղի ունեցած իրենց խոշորագույն մեկշաբաթյա անկման մասին:

Հաջորդ շաբաթվա ընթացքում, մարտի 6-ին, ամբողջ աշխարհում ֆոնդային բորսաները փակվեցին, մինչդեռ տասնամյա և 30-ամյա ԱՄՆ գանձապետական արժեթղթերի գինը ռեկորդային կերպով անկում է գրանցել՝ նվազելով համապատասխանաբար 0.7% և 1.26%-ով: ԱՄՆ նախագահ Դոնալդ Թրամփը ստորագրել է արտակարգ հատկացումների եւ համաճարակի դեմ պայքարի միջոցառումների մասին օրենքը, ինչը ներառում է 8.3մլրդ ԱՄՆ դոլլարի պետական ծախս:

Այն բանից հետո, երբ մարտի 5-ին ՕՊԵԿ և ՌԴ միջև նավթի արդյունահանման կրճատման վերաբերյալ համաձայնագիրը ձախողվեց, իսկ մարտի 7-ին Սաուդյան Արաբիայի ու Ռուսաստանի կողմից հայտարարվեց նավթի արդյունահանման ավելացման մասին, նավթի գինը կրճատվեց 25%-ով: Ժամանակակից տնտեսության մեջ ապրանքնային անդրսահմանային հոսքերի դերը, որը պայմանավորված է տասնամյակներ շարունակ տրանսպորտային, կոմունիկացիոն ծախսերի, իսկ վերջերս նաև սակագների կրճատմամբ, ևս մեծ դեր է խաղացել ֆոնդային շուկայի վրա ազդեցության գործում:

Ընդհանուր առմամբ, ֆոնդային բորսաների թիվը մարտ ամսին կրճատվեց ավելի քան 30%-ով, բաժնետոմսերի և նավթի ակնկալվող փոփոխությունները հասան ճգնաժամային մակարդակի, իսկ ոչ ներդրումային վարկային սպրեդy կտրուկ ընդլայնվել է, քանի որ ներդրողների կողմից նվազեցվեցին ռիսկերը: Համաշխարհային ֆինանսական շուկաներում ցնցումները տեղի են ունենում չնայած այն հանգամանքին, որ G20-ի կողմից հետճգնաժամային բարեփոխումների վերաբերյալ էական և ընդգրկուն համաձայնության:

2020թ. մարտի 9-ի շաբաթը

On the morning of 9 March, the S&P 500 fell 7% in four minutes after the exchange opened, triggering a circuit breaker for the first time since the financial crisis of 2007–08 and halting trading for 15 minutes. At the end of trading, stock markets worldwide saw massive declines (with the STOXX Europe 600 falling to more than 20% below its peak earlier in the year), with the Dow Jones Industrial Average eclipsing the previous one-day decline record on 27 February by falling 2,014 points (or 7.8%). The yield on 10-year and 30-year U.S. Treasury securities hit new record lows, with the 30-year securities falling below 1% for the first time in history.

On 12 March, Asia-Pacific stock markets closed down (with the Nikkei 225 of the Tokyo Stock Exchange also falling to more than 20% below its 52-week high), European stock markets closed down 11% (their worst one-day decline in history), while the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down an additional 10% (eclipsing the one-day record set on 9 March), the NASDAQ Composite was down 9.4%, and the S&P 500 was down 9.5% (with the NASDAQ and S&P 500 also falling to more than 20% below their peaks), and the declines activated the trading curb at the New York Stock Exchange for the second time that week. Oil prices dropped by 8%, while the yields on 10-year and 30-year U.S. Treasury securities increased to 0.86% and 1.45% (and their yield curve finished normal). On 15 March, the Fed cut its benchmark interest rate by a full percentage point, to a target range of 0 to 0.25%. However, in response, futures on the S&P 500 and crude oil dropped on continued market worries. Almost 75% of the hedge funds suffered steep losses during this timeline.

Oil prices

Տե՛ս նաև՝ 2020 Russia–Saudi Arabia oil price war

The COVID-19 pandemic and related confinement measures caused an unprecedented contraction in economic activity and a collapse in demand for oil and oil products. The result is one of the biggest price shocks the energy market experienced since the first oil shock of 1973. Oil prices dipped below US$20 (Brent Crude) a barrel, losing nearly 70% in value, with storage capacity approaching its limits (OilPrice).

Movement of WTI price from 2019. The crash started in mid-February 2020. On 20 April 2020, prices dropped below zero for the first time in history.

Demand for motor gasoline fell sharply in the United States

The reduction in the demand for travel and the lack of factory activity due to the outbreak significantly impacted demand for oil, causing its price to fall. In mid-February, the International Energy Agency forecasted that oil demand growth in 2020 would be the smallest since 2011. Chinese demand slump resulted in a meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to discuss a potential cut in production to balance the loss in demand. The cartel initially made a tentative agreement to cut oil production by 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) following a meeting in Vienna on 5 March 2020, which would bring the production levels to the lowest it has been since the Iraq War. Meanwhile, analytics firm IHS Markit predicted a fall global demand for crude to fall by 3.8 million bpd in the first quarter of 2020, largely due to the halt to Chinese economic activity due to the virus; it also predicted the first annual reduction in demand for crude since the financial crisis of 2007–08.

However, Russia refused to cooperate with the OPEC cuts, effectively ending the agreement it has maintained with OPEC since 2016. Russia balked as it believed that the growth of shale oil extraction in the U.S., which was not party to any agreement with OPEC, would require continued cuts for the foreseeable future. Reduced prices would also damage the U.S. shale industry by forcing prices below operating costs for many shale producers, and thus retaliate for the damage inflicted on Russian and OPEC finances. The breakdown in talks also resulted in a failure to extend the cut in output of 2.1 million bpd that was scheduled to expire at the end of March.

On 8 March 2020, Saudi Arabia unexpectedly announced that it would instead increase production of crude oil and sell it at a discount (of $6–8 a barrel) to customers in Asia, the US and Europe, following the breakdown of negotiations. Prior to the announcement, the price of oil had fallen by more than 30% since the start of the year, and upon Saudi Arabia's announcement it dropped a further 30 percent, though later recovered somewhat. Brent Crude, used to price two-thirds of the world's crude oil supplies, experienced the largest drop since the 1991 Gulf War on the night of 8 March. Also, the price of West Texas Intermediate fell to its lowest level since February 2016. Fears of the Russian–Saudi Arabian oil price war caused a plunge in U.S. stocks, and have a particular impact on American producers of shale oil. On 13 March, oil prices posted their largest single-week decline since 2008.

Plans announced on 13 March 2020 by U.S. President Donald Trump that he was directing the U.S. Department of Energy to purchase oil for the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve were suspended less than two weeks later when funding for the purchase was not provided by Congress. This would have allowed the purchase of up to 92 million barrels. At the time, the Reserve held 635 million barrels with a capacity of 727 million. The Washington Post characterized this as "bail[ing] out domestic oil companies", though the effect on prices was expected to be minor in a 100 million barrel per day market.

In sharp contrast to US inaction, Australia announced on 22 April it would take advantage of the lowest oil prices in 21 years to build a fuel reserve by purchasing $60 million worth of crude and storing it in the US SPR.

Goldman Sachs predicted on 14 March that one-third of oil and oil service companies in the U.S. would be bought by competitors or driven out of business by the low crude prices. Oil companies that filed for bankruptcy during the pandemic include Whiting Petroleum (on 1 April) and Diamond Offshore (on 27 April).

On Thursday, 9 April, OPEC, Russia and other producers tentatively agreed to the biggest oil production cuts in history. They decided to withdraw 10 million barrels per day or 10% of global production from the market for the months of May and June, a step further supported by G20 Energy Ministers.

In March 2021, the oil prices ascended as high as $71.38 a barrel. It was for the first time since 8 January 2020, the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The oil prices climbed up after the Houthi rebels of Yemen attacked the Aramco oil facility of Saudi Arabia using missiles and drones.

Negative WTI futures (20 April 2020)

Oil prices for selected North American benchmarks in the spring of 2020

On 20 April 2020, the futures price of West Texas Intermediate crude to be delivered in May became negative, an unprecedented event. This was a result of uninterrupted supply and a much reduced demand, as oil storage facilities reaching their maximum capacity. Analyst characterized the event as an anomaly of the closing of the May futures market coupled with the lack of available storage in that time frame. The two previous inflation-adjusted low points for oil are $6 in 1931 during the Great Depression and Texas oil boom; and $2.50 in January and February 1862 during the American Civil War and Pennsylvania oil rush. WTI futures for May delivery recovered on the last day of trading, 21 April, ending at $10.01 a barrel. However, that day, Brent crude futures for June delivery fell 24% to $19.33 a barrel, the lowest level since 2002, while WTI June futures fell 43% to $11.57 a barrel. More than two million futures contracts were traded on 21 April, a new record. Oil industry analysts were pessimistic about near-term stability in the market; an analyst for the broker OANDA stated, "There is nothing to make energy traders believe that storage constraints, rising inventories, and demand concerns will be alleviated."

The finances of many oil-producing nations suffered severe stress. Iraq, which gets 90% of its budget from oil revenue and could profitably extract oil as long as it was above $60 a barrel, announced that it would have a $4.5 billion monthly shortfall starting in May. Other oil exporters – including Mexico, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Nigeria – are expected to contract economically or struggle to manage the fiscal fallout. Countries such as Saudi Arabia and Russia have cash reserves measured in years, but their leadership remain concerned.

Bond and debt markets

Հավելյալ տեղեկություն՝ Corporate debt bubble

Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, a massive amount of borrowing by firms with ratings just above "junk", coupled with the growth of leveraged loans, which are made to companies with significant amount of debt, created a vulnerability in the financial system. The collapse of this corporate debt bubble would potentially endanger the solvency of firms, potentially worsening the next recession. In January, new U.S. corporate debt fell 10% from the previous year, potentially indicating more caution from investors. As the economic impact of the coronavirus began to be felt, numerous financial news sources warned of the potential cascade of impacts upon the outstanding $10 trillion in corporate debt. Between mid-February and early March, investors increased the premium, or additional yield, to hold junk bonds by four times the premium demanded of higher credit lenders, indicating increased wariness.

During the 2020 stock market crash that began the week of 9 March, bond prices unexpectedly moved in the same direction as stock prices. Bonds are generally considered safer than stocks, so confident investors will sell bonds to buy stocks and cautious investors will sell stocks to buy bonds. Along with the unexpected movement of bonds in concert with stocks, bond desks reported that it had become difficult to trade many different types of bonds, including municipal bonds, corporate bonds, and even U.S. Treasury bonds. The New York Times opined that this, coupled with the fall in gold futures, indicated that major investors were experiencing a cash crunch and were attempting to sell any asset they could. As big investors sought to sell, the spread between the prices sellers and buyers wanted has widened. As banks were unable to sell the bonds they were holding, they also stopped buying bonds. As the number of traders fell, the few trades remaining wildly swung the bond prices. Market depth in Treasuries, a measure of liquidity, fell to its lowest level since the 2008 crisis. Over the week of 9 March, investors pulled a weekly record of $15.9 billion from investment-grade bond funds, as well as $11.2 billion from high-yield bond funds, the second-highest on record. Also, prices for bond exchange-traded funds began dropping below their net asset values.

On 12 March, the U.S. Fed took almost unprecedented action to, in its words, "address highly unusual disruptions in Treasury financing markets associated with the coronavirus outbreak". The Federal Reserve Bank of New York announced that it would offer $1.5 trillion in repurchase agreements in U.S. Treasury securities to smooth the functioning of the short-term market that banks use to lend to each other. The New York Fed further announced that it would buy $60 billion of Treasury bonds over the next month to keep the bond market functioning. The seizing up of markets was a critical step in the subprime mortgage crisis that led to the financial crisis of 2007–08 and the Fed appeared to want to act quickly. On 15 March, as well as dropping interest rates, announced it would buy at least $500 billion in Treasures and at least $200 billion in government-backed mortgage securities over the next few months. On 16 March, as the stock market plunged, bond prices jumped according to their historical inverse relationship.

On 17 March, the Fed announced that they would use the Commercial Paper Funding Facility (CPFF). The CPFF was first used in the 2007–08 financial crisis to buy about $350 billion of commercial paper (CP), thereby increasing the amount of cash in the CP market, used by business to pay bills and other short-term demands. CP most directly affects the mortgage and auto loan markets, as well as credit to small and medium-sized businesses. The U.S. Treasury Department authorized $10 billion to backstop any losses incurred by the Fed using the Treasury's Exchange Stabilization Fund. U.S. stock markets rallied on the news.

On 19 March, the European Central Bank announced a 750 billion euro ($820 billion) bond-buying program, named the Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme, to mitigate market turmoil. Unlike in previous ECB asset-purchases, Greek government bonds were included. Markets reacted positively, with the yield on Italian government bonds dropping to 1.542% from 2.5% the day before.

In the week of 23 March, investors attracted by Fed guarantees of market liquidity and comparatively high bond yields rushed into the U.S. corporate debt market. Investment-grade firms issued $73 billion in debt, about 21% more than the previous weekly record. Many U.S. firms sold debt in an attempt to build cash reserves in anticipation of future financial strain.

Meanwhile, Chinese corporate bond defaults fell 30% in the first quarter, year on year, as the Chinese government directed banks to supply loans to corporations to avoid defaults and job losses. Interest rates in China fell to a 14-year low due to government efforts.

On 30 March, Moody's downgraded the outlook on U.S. corporate debt from 'stable' to 'negative,' focusing in particular on the global air travel, lodging and cruise ships, automobiles, oil and gas, and the banking sectors. Fitch forecast a doubling of defaults on U.S. leverage debt from 3% in 2019 to 5–6% in 2020, with a default rate up to 20% for retail and energy companies.

April 2020

In South Korea, the first on-shore debt offering in three weeks was successful on 9 April. However, the yields on won-denominated debt remained high amidst general pessimism about the economic outlook during the pandemic.

Following passage of the U.S. Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, the Fed announced on 9 April that it would buy up to $2.3 trillion in debt from the U.S. market, including from so-called "fallen angels," companies that were downgraded from investment-grade to junk during the chaos of March. The announcement sparked a rally in junk bond exchange-traded funds, as well as individual junk bonds. The New York Times reported on 19 April that U.S. corporations had drawn more than $200 billion from existing credit lines during the COVID-19 crisis, far more than had been extended in the 2008 crisis.

On 9 April, Saudi Arabia and Russia agreed to oil production cuts. Reuters reported that "If Saudi Arabia failed to rein in output, US senators called on the White House to impose sanctions on Riyadh, pull out US troops from the kingdom and impose import tariffs on Saudi oil."

Reporting following the May futures contracts for West Texas Intermediate crude oil falling into negative territory highlighted the financial strain on U.S. oil and oil services companies. As oil prices had plunged below the break even price for U.S. shale oil of about $40 per bbl, companies were unable to fix their finances by extracting more. MarketWatch noted that now "investors are likely to focus less on the viability of a driller’s operations and how cheaply it could unearth oil. Instead, money managers would look to assess if a company’s finances were resilient enough to stay afloat during the current economic downturn."

Virgin Australia, one of two major airlines in Australia, entered voluntary administration on 21 April, after being unable to manage $4.59 billion in debt.

Assets for companies in the U.S. car rental market, which were not included in the CARES Act, were under severe stress on 24 April. S&P Global Ratings had downgraded Avis and Hertz to "highly speculative," while credit default swaps for Hertz bonds indicated a 78% chance of default within 12 months and a 100% chance within five years.

The Bank of Japan increased its holdings of commercial paper by 27.8% in April 2020, which followed a rise of $16.9% in March. Efforts to alleviate strain on Japanese corporate finances also included increasing BoJ corporate bond holdings by 5.27% in April.

May 2020

Between 1 January and 3 May, a record $807.1 billion of U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds were issued. Similarly, U.S. corporations sold over $300 billion in debt in April 2020, a new record. This included Boeing, which sold $25 billion in bonds, stating that it would no longer need a bailout from the U.S. government. Apple, which borrowed $8.5 billion potentially to pay back the $8 billion in debt coming due later in 2020; Starbucks, which raised $3 billion.; Ford, which sold $8 billion in junk-rated bonds despite just losing its investment rating; and cruise line operator Carnival, which increased its offering to $4 billion to meet demand. The main reasons for the lively market are the low interest rates and the Fed's actions to ensure market liquidity. The iShares iBoxx USD Investment Grade Corporate Bond, an exchange-traded fund with assets directly benefiting from Fed actions, grew by a third between 11 March and the end of April. However, companies are growing increasingly leveraged as they increase their debt while earnings fall. Through the end of April 2020, investment-grade corporate bonds gained 1.4% versus Treasury bonds' 8.9%, indicating potential investor wariness about the risk of corporate bonds. Morgan Stanley estimated 2020 U.S. investment-grade bond issuance at $1.4 trillion, around 2017's record, while Barclays estimated the non-financial corporations will need to borrow $125–175 billion in additional debt to cover the drop in earnings from the pandemic recession.

On 4 May, U.S. retailer J.Crew filed for bankruptcy protection to convert $1.6 billion in debt to equity. Its debt largely resulted from the 2011 leveraged buyout by its current owners. J.Crew became the first U.S. retailer to go bankrupt in the COVID-19 downturn. Also in the week of 4 May, the Chamber of Deputies in the National Congress of Brazil was seeking to pass an amendment to the Constitution that would allow the Brazil to buy private sector securities. However, the Central Bank was concerned that bank officials could face accusations of corruption for buying assets from individual companies and were seeking personal liability protection for Central Bank purchases.

On 12 May, the Fed began buying corporate bond ETFs for the first time in its history. It stated its intention to buy bonds directly "in the near future." As companies must prove that they can not otherwise access normal credit to be eligible for the primary market facility, analysts opined that it may create a stigma for companies and be little used. However, the guarantee of a Fed backstop appears to have ensured market liquidity.

In its annual review on 14 May, the Bank of Canada concluded that its three interest rate cuts in March and first ever bond buying program had succeeded in stabilizing Canadian markets. However, it expressed concern about the ability of the energy sector to refinance its debt given historically low oil prices. About C$17 billion in Canadian corporate bonds was sold in April 2020, one of the largest volumes since 2010.

June/July 2020

Կաղապար:Expand section Credit ratings for industries such as energy/oil, retail, entertainment, travel/leisure and banking were affected most heavily by the pandemic. By July 2020, S&P Global and Fitch Ratings had initiated almost as many credit downgrades as the 2007-08 financial crisis. Canada was the first country to lose its triple "A" credit rating in June 2020.

See also

• Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
• List of events affected by the COVID-19 pandemic
• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on education
• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on religion
• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on politics
• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on science and technology
• Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cinema

External links

• Coronavirus: A visual guide to the economic impact BBC