IMF head Christine Lagarde commented in a blog post
- Says that policy makers need to work constructively to reduce trade barriers and disagreements
- Should ensure that US tariffs do not lead to wider escalation of protectionist measures
- Economic history shows that trade wars hurt global growth
- There are several "clouds on the horizon" in the global economy
- Including concerns over trade tensions, spike in volatility in financial markets, more uncertain geopolitics
Well, her comment that global trade wars are "unwinnable" is a direct response to Trump's tweet earlier in the month here.
She also urged finance chiefs who will be attending the G20 meeting next week to guard against financial risks and to foster more inclusive growth as well as strengthen international cooperation - whilst saying that countries should not get sucked into a global trade war just because of the recent US tariffs.
The full blog post can be found here.
The focus on the trade wars rhetoric isn't going to go away any time soon, and the IMF having to chime in every now and then certainly will do little to help settle the nerves of those fearing that it may blow up into something bigger.
