WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM 2017
Overheard at Davos … George Soros’s contrarian take on Trump’s contradictions
The German finance minister calls for Brexit calm; Pravin Gordhan asks them please to hurry up; while some of the big Davos surprises were the things that didn’t happen
One of the most impressive people I encountered at Davos this year was Larry Summers, who made a peculiarly apposite comment off the cuff. Commenting on populism — in some ways the undercurrent theme of the conference — he said, "Classic populism is invariably counterproductive for those in whose name it is offered as a policy regime." For example, he cited the motor industry jobs that US president-elect Donald Trump had "saved" by browbeating US car manufacturers to refrain from moving assembly line job to Mexico. For the sake of a few hundred jobs, Trump had contributed to pushing the dollar/peso exchange rate down by 15%. That change was a "dagger pointed at Michigan", he said. This phenomenon was just visible in the highlight of Day Three of Davos, the speech by UK Prime Minister Theresa May. To the extent that May surprised the conference, it was with her aggressive defence of globalisation and free trade. There are lots of problems with this. First, it puts her slightly at odd...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.