China News Service, Davos, Switzerland, January 19th: As global economic uncertainty intensifies, why is Davos looking for a solution?
China News Service reporter Ma Xiuxiu
On January 19, the 2024 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting with the theme of "Rebuilding Trust" came to an end in Davos.
As an annual meeting held under the most complex geopolitical and economic background in decades, the meeting attracted nearly 3,000 people from all walks of life from more than 120 countries and regions, focusing on economic growth, climate and natural action, and energy security. , technology governance, human development and other issues to explore ways to deal with major global challenges.
Global economic unease grows
2024 is a year of increased uncertainty in the global economy.
The "Chief Economist Outlook" released during the Davos Forum showed that financial tensions, geopolitical divisions and the rapid development of generative artificial intelligence continue to affect the global economy.
More than half (56%) of chief economists expect the global economy to weaken this year.
The majority of respondents said that geopolitical situations will cause shocks to the global economy (87%) and stock markets (80%) in the next three years.
According to forecasts from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, global economic growth will slow to 2.7% in 2024, becoming the lowest natural year for global economic growth since 2020.
The "Future Growth Report 2024" released during the forum pointed out that under continued economic and geopolitical shocks, the global economy will face a severe recession, and economic growth is expected to fall to the lowest level in 30 years by 2030.
"The resilience of the global economy will continue to be tested in the coming year." World Economic Forum Executive Director Sadia Zahidi pointed out that the international community urgently needs to strengthen cooperation to add momentum to sustained and inclusive economic growth.
The growth engine needs to be reshaped
How to add impetus to global economic growth?
On the eve of the forum, Bolger Brende, President of the World Economic Forum, wrote an article pointing out that trade is the driving force for the development of productivity and the engine of innovation.
After the ups and downs of the COVID-19 pandemic, the power of trade must be reinvigorated to support growth, jobs and sustainable development.
Deloitte China Chairman Jiang Ying said in an interview with reporters that digital technology and green transformation will become new driving forces for world economic growth.
The "Chief Economist Outlook" shows that two-thirds of respondents believe that industrial policy will create new economic growth points, and the vast majority of respondents believe that generative artificial intelligence can increase production in high-income economies in 2024 ( 79%) and innovation (74%) efficiency.
Against the background of uncertain global economic expectations, many companies have begun to explore ways to transform.
According to a report released by the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, 97% of CEOs in the Asia-Pacific region stated that they have taken necessary transformation measures and these measures have achieved initial results.
The vast majority of Asia-Pacific CEOs regard generative artificial intelligence as a catalyst for corporate transformation, "which will drive efficiency, innovation and transformational change."
China’s power helps recovery
As the world's second largest economy, China's economy will contribute to global economic growth in 2024.
According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China on the 17th, in 2023, the gross domestic product (GDP) will grow by 5.2% year-on-year, and the growth rate will be 2.2 percentage points faster than in 2022.
Recently, many international organizations have raised their forecasts for China's economic growth, with the International Monetary Fund raising their forecasts by 0.4 percentage points and the OECD raising their forecasts by 0.1 percentage points.
"The healthy development of China's economy will bring very positive spillover effects to other parts of the world." During the forum, Zahidi pointed out in an interview with the media that for most economies in the world, uncertainty will be a period of time in the future. "Key words".
The positive side is that China is one of the very few large economies in the world that is not plagued by high inflation, and interest rates currently remain low.
China has increased investment in manufacturing and renewable energy technologies, and strives to promote trade recovery. A series of measures to boost the economy have begun to take effect and show results.
Chen Liming, Chairman of the Greater China Region of the World Economic Forum, also pointed out that in 2024, China will continue to be the driving force for the recovery of emerging markets by promoting stability.
(over)