Balance has been tipping over from creditors to shareholders and the pandemic is only bringing this deepening fault line to the fore.

Covid-19 slammed into the global consciousness this March and, as expected, immediately torpedoed the markets.

But despite the worsening economic data hogging news headlines, exacerbated by intensifying US-China tensions, the markets have paradoxically strengthened since. The S&P 500 has rebounded by more than 30 per cent since its March nadir, breaching its five-year pre-Covid-19 high.