LaSalle’s September 2021 Macro Indicators

From Pandemic to Endemic: The Delta Variant
Transition


As the Delta variant becomes dominant worldwide and forces some
countries to reimpose restrictions, we ask a crucial question:
What impact on consumer and investor behaviour will COVID-19, and
its existing and future variants, have in the long run?


The good news is that most experts agree that current vaccines
are highly effective against severe disease caused by all known
variants of the virus. The links between cases, hospitalisations
and mortality have weakened in places with the highest level of
vaccinations—such as Singapore, Canada, the UK, Germany, and
France. are among the leaders in their rates of fully vaccinated
individuals.


From the point of view of long-term investors, waves of the virus
will diminish as the outlines of the post-pandemic world become
clearer.  That said, the Delta variant represents a major
setback for a speedy return to pre-pandemic “normalcy”. This
reinforces our view that some aspects of economic and social
behaviour are likely to take longer to recover than many imagined
six months ago.