PR95835

BEIJING, May 5, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

Colliding challenges have cast uncertainty over the global economy as the world

continues to grapple with escalating geopolitical conflicts, rising inflation,

and renewed coronavirus outbreaks, said experts at the International Finance

Forum (IFF) during an online session held on April 27.

Themed around "New Global Landscape: Challenges and Responses", the spring

meeting of IFF 2022 was inaugurated in late April, where a group of

international economic experts and political leaders shed light on economic

headwinds, forecasted global outlook, and discussed strategies and measures to

help global economies navigate challenges ahead.

The global economic recovery is losing steam after a rebound in 2021, noted Zhu

Xian, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of the IFF and former Vice President

of the World Bank.

Amid the new wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, the global recovery largely hinges

on measures that can strike a balance between sustained labor market

challenges, lingering supply-chain restrictions, and surging inflation, he said.

Speaking on the role of the pandemic in reshaping the global economic

landscape, Han Seung-soo, Former Prime Minister of Korea, Co-Chairman of IFF,

and President of the 56th UN General Assembly, pointed out that Covid-19 has

greatly driven the regionalization of the global economy.

He said that the challenge the world needs to take up in the future, especially

in the coming decades, is to maintain the prosperity created by globalization

over the past few decades. China, South Korea, and many other countries have

benefited greatly from the process of economic globalization.

The economic stimulus designed to help the public weather the Covid-19 storm

has caused high inflation and exacerbated social inequity, noted Jenny Shipley,

former prime minister of New Zealand and board member of IFF, adding that

governments should channel support to people in need and set tackling

inequality at the top of their agenda.

Azymbakiev Muratbek Abakirovich, Deputy Secretary-General at Shanghai

Cooperation Organization, said that the global economy continues to confront

the negative effects of the pandemic, compounded by the rise of trade

protectionism and unilateral trade barriers that have greatly harmed the

sustainability and balance of economic growth across the world.

He called for global leaders to join actions to address issues involving

climate change, depleting energy resources, and environmental deterioration. He

also underscored that on top of those notable challenges, global sustainable

development is exposed to the severe risks brought by politicized economic

relations, weakening global governance, as well as stalling reform in the

international trade system.

About International Finance Forum

IFF is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental international organization

founded in Beijing in 2003. Established by financial leaders from more than 20

countries, regions, and international organizations including China, the US,

the EU, and the UN, the forum is a long-standing, high-level platform for

dialogue and communication. For more information, please visit:

http://www.iff.org.cn/php/list.php?tid=477

Source: International Finance Forum (IFF)