"It's a significant statement from anyone, let alone Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the director-general of the World Trade Organization. She warned at the Fortune Global Forum in Riyadh that the global economy is in its choppiest waters since the 1930s, no small feat considering that decade saw the Great Depression and the outbreak of the Second World War - and the Great Recession of 2008 is still in living memory."
""It is functioning," Dr. Okonjo-Iweala said of trade, but it's not functioning quite in the way it used to before. This is due to President Donald Trump enacting several sudden changes to world trade that reflect what he considers flaws in the system. "I think that a lot of the criticisms made by the U.S. of the system are valid," the former Nigerian minister said, urging the audience to use this opportunity for wider reform."
"Dr. Okonjo-Iweala argued that despite rising tariffs, broken supply chains, and the resurgence of economic nationalism, the WTO-led framework has shown surprising resilience. "Before the current wave of tariff disputes, roughly 80% of global trade operated under WTO's most-favored-nation rules," she said, noting that this has dropped to about 72 %, "but the important thing is that the system is still holding.""
Global trade is experiencing its greatest disruption in 80 years, driven by rising tariffs, broken supply chains, and a resurgence of economic nationalism. Sudden policy shifts by major economies have exposed perceived flaws in the trading system and reduced the share of trade covered by most-favored-nation rules from roughly 80% to about 72%. Despite these shocks, the WTO-led framework continues to provide resilience and structure for international commerce. The current moment presents an opportunity to repair, modernize, and strengthen multilateral trade rules to address contemporary challenges and restore greater predictability to global markets.
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