A scatter plot comparing economic decline in Q2 2020 with COVID-19 cases per million people, showing data for various countries.

A data visualization showing the relationship between GDP growth and confirmed COVID-19 cases per million for different countries.

Economic decline in the second quarter of 2020 vs. confirmed COVID–19 cases per million people The vertical axis shows the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases per million, as of August 30. The horizontal axis shows the percentage decline of GDP relative to the same quarter in 2019. It is adjusted for inflation. Confirmed cases per million people (Aug 30) (cases per million people) -30% -25% -20% -15% -10% -5% GDP growth from previous year, 2020 Q2 North America South America Africa Europe Asia Our World in Data France Portugal Italy Belgium Austria Denmark Latvia Israel Czechia Slovakia Lithuania United Kingdom Spain Chile Japan Sweden Finland Bulgaria Peru Tunisia Mexico Malaysia Canada Philippines Indonesia Data source: World Health Organization (2026); Population based on various sources (2024); Eurostat (2020), OECD (2020) and individual national statistical offices Note: The number of confirmed cases is lower than the number of actual cases; the main reason for that is limited testing. OurWorldinData.org/coronavirus | CC BY