“MORE LEVEL PLAYING FIELD”
Countries should also prioritise tackling internal and external macroeconomic imbalances, Georgieva said.
For China, the IMF has recommended to Beijing that it enact policies “to boost chronically low private consumption,” and move the Asian giant away from its current state-supported, export-driven model of growth, she said.
The United States, she added, must work to put rapidly rising government debt “on a declining path”.
And for the European Union, the focus should remain on improving competitiveness “by deepening the single market,” she said.
Georgieva, who leads an organisation that has long championed free trade, privatisation and more open economies, called on the largest countries to chart a path through the current trade uncertainty.
“In trade policy, the goal must be to secure a settlement among the largest players that preserves openness and delivers a more level playing field,” she said.
The aim, she added, should be “to restart a global trend toward lower tariff rates while also reducing nontariff barriers and distortions”.
“We need a more resilient world economy, not a drift to division,” she added. “And, to facilitate the transition, policies must allow private agents time to adjust and deliver.”
