Here is why the economy could keep plunging — even after businesses reopen

As the coronavirus pandemic enters its later stages, businesses and state governments are increasingly laying out plans to end lockdowns and get back to normal business — which many hope will cause the sharpest economic decline in modern history to give way to an equally sharp rebound. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has said he is hopeful for a third-quarter rebound, and forecasters like Goldman Sachs have also predicted this.

But on Tuesday, New York Times columnist and CNBC anchor Andrew Sorkin warned that even if every business reopened today, that doesn't necessarily mean the economy will go back to normal quickly.

One of the chief problems, he explained on Twitter, is that even if the lockdowns can end, social distancing and other personal guidelines that limit business must continue for a long time. And even with businesses open, that might mean less economic activity.