Insight: Trading trajectory after the pandemic

It is legal to say the world as we know it has been kidnapped by the novel coronavirus, which has left thousands dead and millions who have contracted it. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) confessed that “the economic crisis unleashed by the outbreak of COVID-19 is hurting economies, regardless of income level”.  According to its latest numbers, UNIDO indicated that both lower and upper-middle-income countries have been significantly impacted by COVID-19, with an average loss in industrial production across countries, standing at 18 per cent (high-income), 24 per cent (upper middle-income) and 22 per cent (lower middle-income).  The pandemic has hurt a lot of economies but more importantly has taken a toll in some developing countries, such as Kenya and Tanzania who rely on travel and tourism dealing a huge slap on foreign receipts.   The World Bank argues that the decline in the region will be mainly “due to large contractions in South Africa, Nigeria, and Angola driven by their reliance on exports of commodities whose prices have crashed as well as other structural issues. This will inevitably affect Africa’s participation in trade and value chains as well as reduce foreign financing flows.”    Further, global-giant investment bank Goldman Sachs argued that sub-Saharan Africa’s funding needs could surge by almost $75 billion. Hence—in light of this reality the continent requires