Worse to come in social economic crisis: WTO
Trade protectionism must be addressed by the G8 this week, urged World Trade Organisation (WTO) head Pascal Lamy speaking from the G8 meeting in Italy.
“The worst of the crisis in social terms is still to come, which means that the worst of the crisis in political terms is still to come,” he said, adding that the WTO system anticipates a stress test over its ability to prevent protectionism.
Unemployment in Europe and the USA is 9.5 percent and there are fears that countries will turn to protecting local jobs and industries to quell social unrest.
World Bank chief Robert Zoellick supported Lamy’s stance against protectionism, noting that “high-income countries have used subsidies for troubled industries, while low-income countries are using selective increases in border barriers” and that these measures could “spin out of control” as unemployment rises.
Got something to say? Join the export forum here at DynamicExport.com.au.
