News & Analysis

Covid-19 Executive Briefing

Understanding the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the implications for the defence sector

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- ECONOMIC IMPACT -

Latest update: 14 July 2020

Concern over the spread of Covid-19 remains volatile; business optimism continues to improve

Major market indices are improving; oil price dips below zero but rebounds quickly

-4%

The current 2020 consensus forecast for GDP growth, with GDP estimates of top ten economies all trending downwards

100 million 

The number of workers in 35 advanced and emerging nations who were unable to work remotely and are at high risk of unemployment, according to the IMF

Impact of Covid-19 on employment

- Sector Impact: Aerospace, Defence & Security -

Equity indices show the sector's recovery trajectory

Monthly M&A volumes (completed or announced, indexed to 100 in Jan 2019)

Jobs index, representing adjusted active jobs per company

Quarterly filings sentiment (green = positive, red = negative)

Impact On M&A activity

M&A volumes have fallen off a cliff since January 2020. Extensive lockdown measures in major economies made deal-making particularly difficult.


The M&A market will recover, but GlobalData explects to see fewer deals over $1bn in the short term.

Business priorities have changed and this will impact acquirers' M&A strategy.


Expect more investments in weak business areas highlighted by COVID-19 crisis, such as digitalisation and cybersecurity.

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