Comparative Analysis of Fiscal Policies and Measures of Selected Countries in Confronting Coronavirus Pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic has led to different fiscal policies and measures the governments against the negative economic effects of this disease. This article aims to analyze the financial policies and measures of Spain, Italy, and France comparatively in the face of this pandemic. The present research is applied and has been done using qualitative methods. The required data and information have also been extracted and used by referring to reliable global information bases such as OECD. The findings of the research show that the selected countries under study have organized their fiscal policies in the face of Covid-19 in the form of three main groups; direct financial supports, tax supports, and bank supports. These supports in the early months of the pandemic show their focus on the health and treatment sector. However, with the widening of the pandemic, the governments, while paying attention to this sector, have also supported other affected or vulnerable sectors. In any case, controlling Covid-19 through vaccination and social quarantine along with appropriate fiscal policies and measures minimizes the negative economic effects, such as reduced production and investment. However, what makes the effectiveness of these measures different among countries is not only the “type of policies” but also the “implementation time”, “flexibility” and “continuity” of these policies until the end of the epidemic and even for several years after that. Moreover, correct, obvious, and timely information is the most crucial prerequisite for the success of any type of fiscal policy, which should be considered by policymakers.