Davos elite defends globalisation

Bloomberg

The world’s political and corporate elite gathered in the Swiss ski resort of Davos delivered a robust defense of globalisation as US President Donald Trump slapped tariffs on imported solar panels and washing machines in his first major trade action.
The push-back also came as a group of 11 countries, including Japan and Canada, agreed to move forward on an Asia-Pacific trade pact that Trump withdrew from in 2017. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, said the revised TPP would be “more progressive and stronger” for workers on intellectual property, culture and for the automotive industry. China also isn’t included.
“If we are going to push back against the anti-trade tendency in globalisation, that will leave us all worse off,” Trudeau said. “We have to put the concerns and the well-being of our ordinary citizens at the center of what we are negotiating.”
Trump was expected to arrive at the Davos talks this week to deliver a speech on his vision for the future of global trade. He’s expected to attend a World Economic Forum-hosted reception with chief executive officers from the US and Europe, as well as government figures and other officials, according to a US official. “When it was announced that President Trump was coming I think jaws dropped because this wasn’t seen as his crowd,” said David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group. “This is seen as the center of the globalisation movement and he hasn’t been seen as the biggest supporter of globalisation.”
The move on tariffs raises the stakes for the world economy that’s enjoying its best performance in seven years. “We’re going to benefit our consumers and we’re going to create a lot of jobs,” Trump said, as he signed the tariff orders at the White House. It demonstrates “the United States will not be taken advantage of anymore.”
Heightened trade tensions between the US and China,
the world’s two biggest econ-omies, is routinely listed as one of the biggest threats facing global growth.
“We can learn from history that protectionism doesn’t work in the end,” Deutsche Post CEO Frank Appel told Bloomberg News.