"This is unprecedented in living memory. It is hugely tragic in so many ways but especially in terms of what it has meant and means for many people’s livelihoods and for many businesses." Professor Abhinay Muthoo, Dean of Warwick in London, comments on the news that output in the UK fell by 20.4 per cent in April compared with the previous month.

It was suggested following yesterday's Coronavirus Press Briefing that the economic downturn in the wake of the virus could be the biggest since the 18th century South Sea Bubble. Economist Dr Claudia Rei explains the difference between a bubble and the unprecedented situation the world economy is now facing.

It was reported this week that stock markets have suffered their worst quarter since 1987, due to the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Professor Roger Farmer, from the Department of Economics, offers his expert analysis and advice to world economies

"Market penalty depends a great deal on the type of breach, the sensitivity of the information, the number of records lost, the extent to which the firm ‘holds itself out’ as a safe guardian of data and the delay between breach and disclosure." Dr Jonathan Cave comments on the consequences that can flow from large data breaches such as the recent Virgin Media incident.

"To the extent that the market reflects fundamentals, a fall in values caused by expected future supply disruptions is to be expected and is not necessarily a bad thing. But there is a real danger that Coronavirus will spread not only though biological contagion, but through financial contagion." Professor Roger Farmer explores the potential economic impact of COVID-19.