Asia is set for its worst economic performance in 40 years, as years of progress is at risk due to coronavirus, said the World Bank.?
India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan and other small countries could be the next hotspots.?
It added that the disease had badly damaged India's economy and the World Bank estimated it will decelerate to 5 per cent in 2020. When the outbreak happened, our economy was already slowing, the report went on to say.?
"South Asia finds itself in a perfect storm of adverse effects. Tourism has dried up, supply chains have been disrupted, demand for garments has collapsed and consumer and investor sentiments have deteriorated," it said.?
It slashed its growth forecast for the region this year to 1.8-2.8 percent from its pre-pandemic projection of 6.3 percent.?
Worst-hit will be the Maldives where the collapse of tourism will result in gross domestic output contracting by as much as 13 percent, while Afghanistan could shrink by as much as 5.9 percent and Pakistan by up to 2.2 percent.?
Coronavirus has brought the world to a standstill and with over 100,000 deaths and more than 1600,000 affected - it is not looking good. The virus originated from Wuhan and spread all over the world, with countries like Italy and the US emerging as hotspots.