While it doesn’t quite feel that bad yet here in NZ, the global data suggest we are in a situation as bad (or worse if you take a literal view) than the 1930’s. Industrial output, stock markets and world trade are all declining faster now than during the Great Depression.

Naked Capitalism lays out the figures in an elegant article.

Just as the Great War became known as WWI when superseded, I suspect we’ll be calling the current event Depression II in hindsight. The question now is how much worse will it get and how long will it last? We’ve been in decline for a year while during the Great Depression there were three years of decline before a slow trip back to recovery.

I’m all for positivity and believe we shouldn’t dwell on the negative, but acknowledging and and facing the full depth of the situation at hand will better help us adapt to it. The pundits that confidently tell us things will pick up this year have no basis for their argument - we are in uncharted territory now and their cheery delusions won’t help any of us in the long run.