Coronavirus: What the global economy is up against

President Trump’s “America First” strategy has consistently favored unilateral action over promoting international economic cooperation. That must change, as must his failure to marshal bipartisan legislation in difficult moments, because these are precisely the qualities that are needed if Trump is to meet the economic challenge posed by the novel coronavirus pandemic successfully. This is especially true at a time of divided government.

By now, it should be clear that the coronavirus epidemic respects no borders. It has spread to more than 100 countries, including the United States. Nor does it spare individual countries based on their importance to global supply chains or geopolitics, such as China, Italy, Japan, and South Korea.