Macroeconomic Impacts of a Zombie Epidemic

Economic models are valuable tools for exploring hypothetical scenarios, allowing us to analyse how different economic conditions, policy decisions, or unexpected events might affect the overall economy. In this report, we explore the economic impacts of a zombie epidemic. While zombies may not be an actual threat, this scenario can be used as a proxy for other, very much possible events such as pandemics, wars, or civil unrest. With the help of our National Institute Global Econometric Model (NiGEM), we have developed this fictional "Zombie outbreak scenario" as a metaphor to analyse the macroeconomic impacts of such potential extreme events. In this scenario, we examine the outbreak's effects on the economy of the United Kingdom, where the outbreak is assumed to have originated and be largely contained. By analysing the impact on UK output, prices, labour, and fiscal policy, we aim to understand how such events could reshape economies. Additionally, we use this scenario to explore how recent real-world events – such as the London riots, the COVID–19 pandemic, and the war in Ukraine – interact in our model if they occur simultaneously.