Impact of Covid-19 on the Performance of IT Companies of South Asia

Abstract

Since January 2020, COVID-19 has impacted numerous nations and areas worldwide. During the pandemic, many companies and institutions started an online working system, due to which it is considered that the profitability of IT companies increased. As we saw in the literature, no study was conducted that provided information regarding the performance of the IT sector before and after COVID-19. Now, we have decided to add to the existing literature about the impact of COVID-19 on IT companies in South Asia. This research was important because it helped identify the performance of IT companies during the pandemic. The main objective of this study was to analyze the performance of the IT sector, both pre and during/post COVID-19, in selected South Asian countries: Pakistan, India, and Sri Lanka. The study included three periods: pre-COVID-19 from 2010 to 2018, during COVID-19, and post-COVID-19 from 2019 to 2021. To determine whether there was a significant difference between the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the IT sector before and during/after COVID-19, we employed a one-sample T-test. Additionally, to compare the performance of countries with each other and to compare the means of the pre-COVID-19 and during/post-COVID-19 periods, we used the Univariate Variance Analysis test. The null hypothesis was that there was no significant difference in ratios of the IT sector in South Asia between the pre and during/post COVID-19 periods. Through the application of one sample T-test and Univariate test, this study concluded that due to COVID-19, there was a significant difference in profitability, solvency, liquidity, and sales ratios, except for the quick ratio, between the periods of pre and during/post COVID-19.