Industrial Info Assesses COVID-19 Impact on Global Project Spending

SUGAR LAND, Texas, April 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- --Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The COVID-19 pandemic will trigger a "forced global recession" in the second quarter. Most nations have enacted stay-at-home orders, and industrial project spending is expected to be impacted for the remaining part of 2020 and into 2021, Michael Bergen, Industrial Info's executive vice president, told about 1,000 listeners on a webcast April 3.

"We still have not seen the full impact of COVID-19, and it is more than likely that the U.S. economy will be in a recession for 2020," Bergen said.

The webinar is available for replay at this link.

Economists typically define a recession as two consecutive quarters of declining gross domestic product (GDP). The U.S. economy grew in the fourth quarter of 2019, but along with the economies of nearly all other nations, likely will contract for the just-completed first quarter, and dramatically for the second quarter as the COVID-19 pandemic strangles economic life around the world. The U.S. is scheduled to report on first-quarter GDP later this month.

Looking to 2021, "I believe we'll see more industrial plant capital spending fallout occur similar to the recovery period we had in 2010," he continued. "That's not to say that the economy will still be in a recession during 2021; it's more so to say that project spending will be lighter during the first year of an economic recovery. We do know the longest U.S. economic expansion in history has ended."

IIR's Project Spending Index, which measures the realization rate and fallout rate of industrial project activity, provides a forward-looking indicator for the health of the industry.

"Over the last few years, we've witnessed billion-dollar projects being executed during a healthy, shale-driven economy. Next year it will be different."

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Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to [email protected] or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.

Contact: Brian Ford

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SOURCE Industrial Info Resources, Inc.