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Recovery Hopes Revive World Stock Markets

A currency trader walks near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, May 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A currency trader walks near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, May 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
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Recovery Hopes Revive World Stock Markets

A currency trader walks near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, May 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A currency trader walks near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, May 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Global stock markets and US futures rebounded Monday from losses last week after the head of the US Federal Reserve expressed optimism that the American economy might start to recover this year from the coronavirus pandemic.

London and Frankfurt pushed higher, while benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Australia advanced.

That came despite Japan´s announcement that its economy contracted in the first quarter and the Trump administration´s decision to step up a technology conflict with Beijing by tightening restrictions on Chinese tech giant Huawei.

Investors appear to be looking past the outbreak to a recovery despite rising infection numbers in the United States, Brazil, and some other countries. Forecasters warn the latest market buoyancy might be premature and a return to normal could be some way off.

Market sentiment "will likely remain fragile" as investors weigh government stimulus plans against rising US-Chinese tension and poor economic data, said Riki Ogawa of Mizuho Bank in a report.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 in London gained 2.4% to 5,936 and the DAX in Frankfurt advanced 2.9% to 10,766. France's CAC 40 rose 2.2% to 4,373.

On Wall Street, futures for the S&P 500 index and the Dow industrials were up 1.6% and 1.7%, respectively. On Friday, US stocks turned in their biggest weekly loss in nearly two months.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.2% to 2,875.42 and Tokyo´s Nikkei 225 gained 0.5% to 20,133.73. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong advanced 0.6% to 23,934.77.

The Kospi in Seoul was 0.5% higher at 1,937.11 and Australia´s S&P-ASX 200 gained 1% to 5,460.50. India´s Sensex lost 2.6% to 30,310.56. Markets in New Zealand and Southeast Asia advanced.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell expressed optimism Sunday the US economy can begin to rebound in the second half, assuming the coronavirus doesn´t erupt in a second wave. He said a full recovery won´t likely be possible before the arrival of a vaccine.

That appeared to encourage investors who are looking for signs of when global economies might return to normal.

In an interview with CBS´s "60 Minutes," Powell said the US economy was fundamentally healthy before the virus forced widespread business shutdowns and tens of millions of layoffs. Once the outbreak has been contained, he said, the economy should be able to rebound "substantially."

The US downturn was the result of an external event instead of problems such as the financial instabilities that led to the 2008 crisis, which may mean "we can get back to a healthy economy fairly quickly," Powell said.

Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are due to appear Thursday before a Senate panel to report on recovery efforts.

"Expect policymakers to strike a more cautious tone, emphasizing that we are not out of the woods yet and that there will be more stimulus in the offing," Stephen Innes of AxiCorp said in a report.

Meanwhile, Japan´s government reported Monday the world´s third-largest economy contracted by 0.9% in the three months ending in March compared with the previous quarter.

That "sharp fall" suggests there is "much worse to come" in the current quarter, Tom Learmouth of Capital Economics said in a report.

The White House added to trade uncertainty by tightening restrictions on Huawei Technologies Ltd. American officials say Huawei, one of the biggest makers of smartphones and network equipment, is a security risk, which the company denies.

Washington said non-US companies that make processor chips for Huawei must obtain permission to use American technology, a move that threatens to disrupt sales. Huawei warned earlier that additional US sanctions on the company might trigger Chinese government retaliation against American enterprises.

In energy markets, benchmark US crude gained $2.78 to $32.21 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.87 to $29.43 on Friday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, advanced $2.08 to $34.58 per barrel in London. It rose $1.37 the previous session to $32.50.

The dollar gained to 107.24 yen from Friday´s 107.08 yen. The euro declined to $1.0816 from $1.0828.

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Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
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Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).

Harvard University economics professor Pol Antràs said Saudi Arabia represents an exceptional model in the shifting global trade landscape, differing fundamentally from traditional emerging-market frameworks. He also stressed that globalization has not ended but has instead re-formed into what he describes as fragmented integration.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat on the sidelines of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies, Antràs said Saudi Arabia’s Vision-driven structural reforms position the Kingdom to benefit from the ongoing phase of fragmented integration, adding that the country’s strategic focus on logistics transformation and artificial intelligence constitutes a key engine for sustainable growth that extends beyond the volatility of global crises.

Antràs, the Robert G. Ory Professor of Economics at Harvard University, is one of the leading contemporary theorists of international trade. His research, which reshaped understanding of global value chains, focuses on how firms organize cross-border production and how regulation and technological change influence global trade flows and corporate decision-making.

He said conventional classifications of economies often obscure important structural differences, noting that the term emerging markets groups together countries with widely divergent industrial bases. Economies that depend heavily on manufacturing exports rely critically on market access and trade integration and therefore face stronger competitive pressures from Chinese exports that are increasingly shifting toward alternative markets.

Saudi Arabia, by contrast, exports extensively while facing limited direct competition from China in its primary export commodity, a situation that creates a strategic opportunity. The current environment allows the Kingdom to obtain imports from China at lower cost and access a broader range of goods that previously flowed largely toward the United States market.

Addressing how emerging economies should respond to dumping pressures and rising competition, Antràs said countries should minimize protectionist tendencies and instead position themselves as committed participants in the multilateral trading system, allowing foreign producers to access domestic markets while encouraging domestic firms to expand internationally.

He noted that although Chinese dumping presents concerns for countries with manufacturing sectors that compete directly with Chinese production, the risk is lower for Saudi Arabia because it does not maintain a large manufacturing base that overlaps directly with Chinese exports. Lower-cost imports could benefit Saudi consumers, while targeted policy tools such as credit programs, subsidies, and support for firms seeking to redesign and upgrade business models represent more effective responses than broad protectionist measures.

Globalization has not ended

Antràs said globalization continues but through more complex structures, with trade agreements increasingly negotiated through diverse arrangements rather than relying primarily on multilateral negotiations. Trade deals will continue to be concluded, but they are likely to become more complex, with uncertainty remaining a defining feature of the global trading environment.

Interest rates and artificial intelligence

According to Antràs, high global interest rates, combined with the additional risk premiums faced by emerging markets, are constraining investment, particularly in sectors that require export financing, capital expenditure, and continuous quality upgrading.

However, he noted that elevated interest rates partly reflect expectations of stronger long-term growth driven by artificial intelligence and broader technological transformation.

He also said if those growth expectations materialize, productivity gains could enable small and medium-sized enterprises to forecast demand more accurately and identify previously untapped markets, partially offsetting the negative effects of higher borrowing costs.

Employment concerns and the role of government

The Harvard professor warned that labor markets face a dual challenge stemming from intensified Chinese export competition and accelerating job automation driven by artificial intelligence, developments that could lead to significant disruptions, particularly among younger workers. He said governments must adopt proactive strategies requiring substantial fiscal resources to mitigate near-term labor-market shocks.

According to Antràs, productivity growth remains the central condition for success: if new technologies deliver the anticipated productivity gains, governments will gain the fiscal space needed to compensate affected groups and retrain the workforce, achieving a balance between addressing short-term disruptions and investing in long-term strategic gains.

Business

Aljadaan: Emerging Markets Account for 70% of Global Growth

Al-Jadaan speaking to the attendees at the "AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies" (Asharq Al-Awsat
Al-Jadaan speaking to the attendees at the "AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies" (Asharq Al-Awsat
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Aljadaan: Emerging Markets Account for 70% of Global Growth

Al-Jadaan speaking to the attendees at the "AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies" (Asharq Al-Awsat
Al-Jadaan speaking to the attendees at the "AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies" (Asharq Al-Awsat

Saudi Minister of Finance Mohammed Aljadaan stressed Sunday that the world economy is going through a “profound transition,” saying emerging markets and developing economies now account for nearly 60 percent of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in purchasing power terms and over 70 percent of global growth.

In his opening remarks at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies, organized by the Saudi Ministry of Finance and the IMF in AlUla, the minister said these economies have become an increasingly important driver of global growth with their share of global economy more than doubling since 2010.

“Today, the 10 emerging economies in the G20 alone account for more than half of the world growth. Yet, they face a more complex and fragmented environment, elevated debt levels, slower trade growth and increasing exposure to geopolitical shocks.”

“Unfortunately, more than half of low income countries are either in or at the risk of debt distress. At the same time global trade growth has slowed at around half of what it was pre the pandemic,” Aljadaan added.

The Finance Minister stressed that the Saudi experience over the past decade has reinforced three lessons that may be relevant to the discussions at the two-day conference, which brings together a select group of ministers and central bank governors, leaders of international organizations, leading investors and academics.

“First, macroeconomic stability is not the enemy of growth. It is actually the foundation,” he said.

“Structural reforms deliver results only when institutions deliver. So there is no point of reforming ... if the institutions are unable to deliver,” he stated.

Finally, he said that “international cooperation matters more, not less, in a fragmented world.”

Business

Georgieva from AlUla: Growth Still Lacks Pre-pandemic Levels

Kristalina Georgieva speaking to attendees at the second edition of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Kristalina Georgieva speaking to attendees at the second edition of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Georgieva from AlUla: Growth Still Lacks Pre-pandemic Levels

Kristalina Georgieva speaking to attendees at the second edition of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Kristalina Georgieva speaking to attendees at the second edition of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat)

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said Sunday that world growth still lacks pre-pandemic levels, expressing concern as she expected more shocks amid high spending and rising debt levels in many countries.

Georgieva spoke at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies, organized by the Saudi Ministry of Finance and the IMF in AlUla.

The two-day conference brings together a select group of ministers and central bank governors, leaders of international organizations, leading investors and academics to deliberate on policies to global stability, prosperity, and multilateral collaboration.

Georgieva said that the conference was launched last year in recognition of the growing role of emerging market economies in a world of sweeping transformations.

“I came out of this gathering .... With a sense of hope for the pragmatic attitude and determination to pursue good policies and build strong institutions,” she said.

Georgieva stressed that “good policies pay off,” and said that growth rates across emerging economies reached four percent this year, exceeding by a large margin those of advanced economies that are around 1.5 percent.