The economic crisis that has besieged the world since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has led to some searching questions about the future of globalisation. Several Western commentators have been debating on whether the pandemic would threaten it. This question is hardly new: Since the middle of the 1990s, or from its very early days, many have had doubts about globalisation’s future. The “Great Recession” of 1929 brought fresh doubts about it with some narrowing the problem down to financial globalisation. Uncertainties about the future of globalisation have arisen in the wake of the disruptions that the “Great Lockdown” has caused in all major economies, with the possible exception of China. The ongoing disruptions are reminiscent of the “Great Depression” of the 1930s, after which most economies turned protectionist. Given this context, the likely impact of the “Great Lockdown” on global trade volumes is another ominous sign. The World Trade Organization
.png)
