Business Talk Magazine

The global economy has been coping with a variety of shocks since early 2022. Conflicts like Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and China’s ongoing zero COVID policies have stoked inflation and dampened economic activity. International Monetary Fund predicts a decline in global GDP growth from 6% in 2021 to 3.2% in 2022 and 2.7% in 2023. This was described as “the worst growth profile since 2001” with the exception of the global financial crisis and the severe period of the Covid-19 outbreak. Global inflation is anticipated to increase from 4.7% in 2021 to 8.8% this year before falling to 6.5% in 2023 and 4.1% by 2024, but it will continue to be higher than several major central banks’ goal levels throughout this entire period.

Assuaging market investors and economists, China stated on Tuesday that the country would officially terminate quarantine measures for incoming travellers on January 8 and halt its almost three-year-old zero-Covid policy.

Daniel Lacalle, author and head economist at Tressis Gestion, predicts a decade of subpar growth based on the scenario. The possibility of a full reopening of the Chinese economy, according to Lacalle, was “the biggest positive” that markets should anticipate for 2023, he said in an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Tuesday. Even though global growth wouldn’t return to levels seen in the years prior to the pandemic for a while, it would be heightened by the economy’s reopening.

He continued by saying that industrialised economies would be fortunate to see annual growth of 1% if they were able to do so, and that high inflation rates would be the worst possible scenario.

Despite the gloomy prognosis, he maintained that no crisis is imminent. In order to avert a financial crisis, he said, markets are starting to price a scenario in which global growth and economic development are not at a robust level. If this occurs, it will undoubtedly be a good thing.