DAVID WHITE/STUFF The latest round of lockdowns around the world will hit the economy again–but, perhaps, not as hard. The lockdowns of the spring, which at their peak covered more than half of the world’s population, provoked an almighty downturn. In April global economic output was 20 per cent below where it would have been otherwise. As cases of coronavirus have soared again, many rich countries are imposing another round of lockdowns. France was in confinement in November, Italy locked down over Christmas, and England went into a national lockdown on January 6. Parts of Japan have entered a state of emergency.