5 Industries On The Rise Despite COVID Pressure
“I have lost my job,”
A common sentence that we continually hear throughout the challenging year of 2020. The outright fear and distraught that the pandemic has brought has become very difficult to quantify. The continued impact of the ongoing COVID crisis on the global economy has been staggering due to reduced spending and mobility.
Many industries that used to rely on brick-and-mortar sales have found themselves in the difficult position of restructuring the entire core of their business practice. These are muddy waters, due to the interdependent nature of the modern economic environment. Any changes will also cause large ripples to be felt across many industries in every country.
Some industries do have the resilience or opportunity to thrive in this global financial uncertainty; most obvious being healthcare. Here, we will touch on several industries that have come through unscathed, and perhaps, even stronger because of the pandemic lockdowns.
Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals
As previously mentioned, healthcare and big pharma are the obvious industry that has benefited from the global pandemic. According to MedScape, 44% of Americans take at least 1 prescription medicine, with 17% taking three or more. Without making the entire industry sound opportunistic, we can see from data that people, in general, are simply becoming more health-conscious.
Now, with government and corporate funds being funnelled into finding a solution to the COVID crisis, you can certainly expect to see improved infrastructure and future preparedness to counter unforeseeable pandemic outbreaks. According to Forbes, both Walgreens and CVS, outright giants in the pharma line, have plans to hire a total of 70,000 employees to sustain their growth. CVS has taken it to another level and partnered up with key players (Hilton and Marriot) in the hospitality industry to supply employment for individuals who lost their jobs. Expect to see further large investments being made into this sector in the foreseeable future.
Insurance
If the healthcare and pharma line are seeing marked improvements, the insurance industry is one to benefit. Over the years, insurance has proven resilient to most economic cycles. With strict screening and countless gatekeeping measures to ensure profitability, payouts are usually given to a small percentage of the population.
Many governments have given directives for providers to ensure COVID-19 coverage and process faster payouts for related claims. However, it is doubtful that this would put any dent on the bottom line. This industry continues to surge ahead.
TelCo
With constant lockdowns and lack of mobility, the need for contactless professional or social communication has become fundamental. The number of professionals working from home has led to a marked increase in data consumption. This increase can also be attributed to a lack of outdoor recreational activities; people are consuming more digital media than ever.
This trend of remote-work policy has been adopted by many large companies around the world and will continue to be on the rise as more corporate entities adapt to the new reality. As a result, telecommunication providers are ramping up efforts to sustain increased bandwidth usage globally and utilizing more resources than ever to achieve this.
Digital Media
While telco operators are seeing vast growth in bandwidth usage, digital media consumption has also increased exponentially. Users are continuing to grow every day, largely affected by social distancing and lockdown policies. The need for stimulus has given rise to an increased output of creative content and news feeds covering every topic, encompassing every industry.
E-Commerce & Payment Gateways
As proven by industry juggernauts Amazon and Ali Baba, contactless purchasing and payment systems are the new consumer’s choice over physical stores and crowded places. The growing fears of a second or third wave of the pandemic will see this sector profit in the short term, but will also have long term sustainability once customers get used to the concept of shopping online.
Final Thoughts
Time will tell how this crisis further impacts all industries. Even market specialists are finding it increasingly difficult to predict future economic balance. Note that it isn’t necessarily which industry you work, but your skill set and area of expertise that counts. Adopting a strong mentality and gaining the right set of skills will reap dividends as we continue to attain economic recovery.
Keep growing. Keep learning.
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