Trade wars a drag on global economy – Patel
JOHANNESBURG – Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel said yesterday that heightened uncertainty from growing trade tensions was placing a drag on an already fragile global economy.
This was as Patel returned from Japan where he attended the two-day G20 Joint Trade and Digital Economy Ministers and the G20 Trade Ministers meeting.
“Heightened uncertainty from growing trade tensions and measures is also placing a drag on an already fragile global economy. This follows long-standing concerns by many developing countries about the imbalances created by the outcome of the Uruguay Round,” said Patel.
He also said that the G20 countries cannot respond to the challenges by dismantling the rules-based system and replace it with unilateralism.
“The use of the rules-based multilateral system, coupled with necessary reform of the WTO should ensure that the promise of increase trade does indeed and in reality benefit all countries and people. We need a greater commitment to development-oriented trade agreement,” he said.
African News Agency (ANA)
Source: iol.co.za
