Reinhart Frets World Faces Financial Crisis if Pandemic Lingers

World Bank Chief Economist Carmen Reinhart is worried that the protracted nature of the Covid-19 pandemic may overwhelm household and business balance sheets and develop into a financial crisis.

“It’s a cumulative toll,” Reinhart said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “This did not start as a financial problem. This started and continues to be, first and foremost, a health crisis. But it has elements that have morphed into your classic balance sheet problems.”