Even before Covid-19 took hold, American population growth hit the slowest rate in a century. Although many initially speculated that months of quarantine would lead to a post-pandemic baby boom, recent evidence and historical analysis indicate that Covid-19 may actually incite a baby bust.
Whether it slows or accelerates, population growth is the biggest theme with the most impact on the investment world. There’s no doubt that population growth has been a driving force behind the phenomenal wealth and economic growth of the past 50 years. The larger and wealthier the population, the more consumer demand there will be. Presumably, inverse population growth and wealth would have an inverse economic impact.
But investments in new technology might change that. We are so early in the curve of so many promising technologies – solar power, gene editing and 3D printing, to name a few – that even if today’s population were vastly reduced, the demand for these new technologies would continue to grow exponentially.
In a recent article I wrote for Forbes, I explore in more detail how increased investment in sustainability could be the greatest silver lining of Covid-19.
Click here to read the entire article.