A Tale of Two Pandemics

The deeper we get into the COVID-19 pandemic, the more it becomes apparent that the deleterious effects of lockdowns, layoffs, business closures, and other restrictions are not borne equally by all sectors of the economy. Some, particularly those whose work can most easily be done remotely or do not require hand-to-hand engagement, are flourishing from a monetary perspective while others, particularly those who depend on human-to-human transactions, are falling farther behind.This post from the On the Economy blog by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis illustrates this disparity quite well. Two datasets describing the same economy seem to suggest divergent trends. And yet both and true, meaning that the pandemic is simultaneously the best and worst of times.Dickens, anyone?