Experts are keeping track of novel coronavirus cases by province, across Canada and worldwide, with the hope of watching the curve flatten. But along with a global pandemic, an economic crisis was looming.

In China on April 8, the “unsealing of Wuhan,” marked the end to a 76-day lockdown in the city at the epicentre of the outbreak. Now the city’s economic and social functions are slowly moving back to normal. Still, an economic rebound will take a long time for both the city and the country as a whole. For the first three months of 2020, China posted its worst quarter since 1976, and consumer spending dropped 12.5 per cent, suggesting people are still hesitant to open their pocketbooks.

Back home, Canada is trying to predict our economic recovery, but this is the first time in modern history that a pandemic has shut down global trade. The letters of the alphabet enlisted to invoke the potential shape of the recession cycle now include V, U, W and L. As provinces, prepare to reopen their economies, the reality is that recovery may take longer than expected. Companies are urging a cautious approach to lifting stay-at-home orders imposed to combat the spread of coronavirus.

Story continues below advertisement

So, what will Canada’s Pandexit strategy look like? Officials are still struggling to articulate what the coming months will look like. Here’s a primer on who will make the decisions and what has to be considered.