The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on commercial and economic activities: G7 countries and Turkey

This study examines the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on commercial and economic activity within a historical and conceptual framework, offering a multidimensional assessment by integrating comparative country analysis with the case of Türkiye. In the first stage of the study, the disruptions that pandemics have created in the social order and the functioning of economies throughout history are explained; it is discussed how the pandemic phenomenon generates economic outcomes through supply and demand channels, heightened uncertainty, supply-chain disruptions, and intersectoral differentiation. In the third chapter, the effects of Covid-19 on G7 economies are analyzed on the basis of indicators such as economic growth, employment, budget balance, public finance, foreign trade, and health expenditures, and crisis management strategies are evaluated comparatively. In the Türkiye chapter, the emergence and course of the pandemic in the country are examined in the context of restrictive measures and adaptation policies; the impacts that became salient through the real economy, labor market, public finance, and foreign trade channels are addressed from a holistic perspective. Using a descriptive-analytical approach grounded in official statistics and data from international organizations, the study highlights the inclusiveness of social protection mechanisms, the resilience of fiscal space, and the sensitivity of vulnerable areas such as foreign trade and tourism under pandemic conditions, thereby providing a basis for policy implications to enhance preparedness for similar shocks. Keywords: Covid-19, Economy, Türkiye, G7, Trade.