Asked in an article in
Le Monde
, economist Patrick Artus tried to assess the economic impact of government measures taken against Covid-19.
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The Natixis chief economist tried to take into account the cost of these measures for public finances and the economy.
As explained by
Le Monde
, he made calculations on the
"price of life"
induced by the restrictive measures, that is to say the number of lives saved compared to the loss of national wealth that they cause. .
A month of confinement costs 5 points of GDP
In the spring, the two months of confinement caused a plunge in activity of 10%.
"A month of strict confinement costs, in the short term, 5 points of gross domestic product (GDP)"
, explains the economist.
Based on scientific data, Patrick Artus estimates the number of lives saved at around 20,000 per month.
"A point of GDP representing 24 billion euros, it is very expensive the life"
, he explains to the World.
The economist thus figures each life saved at around 6 million euros.
This figure is higher than the estimate of the added value of a worker throughout his career.
Patrick Artus, who retains an average salary of 22,000 euros per year, estimates that a "life" produces about 1 million euros in wealth, six times less than the cost of a life saved.