- Coronavirus has been shutting down America's biggest cities, forcing officials to close restaurants, non-essential stores, and more to prevent the virus from spreading.
- James Parrott, an economist and professor at The New School, told Business Insider it's triggered the onset of a recession.
- He said we can safely help boost the economy by providing funding to displaced workers, shopping at local businesses online, and ordering delivery from nearby restaurants.
- But experts say the economy really needs government action right now.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
America's biggest cities are largely shutting down to slow the spread of coronavirus, but they're also slowing down the economy.
"It's clear the shutdowns related to the coronavirus pandemic have triggered the onset of a recession," James Parrott, director of economic and fiscal policy at The New School's Center for New York City Affairs, told Business Insider on Monday.
Major cities are already buckling under the economic effects. Parrott said he expects unemployment in New York City to "skyrocket within the next couple of weeks." Parrott has also told The New York Times that New York City might lose as many as 500,000 jobs in businesses catering to tourists and people moving around the city, equal to a $1 billion loss in wages in one month.
Small businesses are likely to lose out on "billions" of dollars during the pandemic, Helana Natt, executive director of the New York Chamber of Commerce, told Business Insider. There are already small businesses closing permanently in the city, she said.
Likewise, Pedro Gomez, director of the small business team at Seattle's Office of Economic Development, told Business Insider that Seattle's local business have already been "severely impacted."
With businesses temporarily closed and citizens self quarantining, self isolating, and/or self distancing, we're put in a difficult bind. How can we still spend money in a way that can boost the economy without putting ourselves - or others - at risk of infection?