WTO: Global economy still stands strong against tariffs

VTV.vn - Global trade is still operating stably despite shocks and disruptions from US tariffs this year.

Illustration photo.

The above information is the comment just given by Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

The WTO Director-General also expressed hope that the upcoming US-China summit will go well, helping to reach an agreement to avoid the risk of fragmenting global trade.

In early October, the WTO raised its forecast for global trade growth this year to 2.4%, up from its August forecast of 0.8%. However, the organization also warned that the outlook for 2026 is worsening, with growth likely to be just 0.5% due to the long-term impact of new tariffs and the recent global economic slowdown.

Trade tariffs have become a dominant factor and a drag on global trade since President Trump shocked both allies and other countries with a wide-ranging tariff regime in April.

Countries have been working to reach trade deals with the White House, but even allies such as Britain are still subject to a basic 10% tariff on goods exported to the US.

Global trade volumes increased sharply in the first half of 2025 – up 4.9% year-on-year – with a number of factors contributing to this strong growth.

These factors included a surge in imports into the US before the tariff hike, coupled with favorable macroeconomic conditions with falling inflation, accommodative fiscal policies and tight labor markets that boosted real incomes and spending in major economies, the WTO said.

Meanwhile, strong growth in emerging markets and growing demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-related goods – including semiconductors, servers and telecommunications equipment – ​​also fueled global trade growth, with AI-related spending driving nearly half of total trade growth in the first half of the year, up 20% year-on-year in value terms.

Moreover, global competition in developing AI-related products has become hotter than ever.

The WTO notes that the US accounted for about one-fifth of global AI-related trade growth in the first half of 2025. However, much of this growth came from Asia, which accounted for nearly two-thirds of global AI-related trade over the same period.

Source: https://vtv.vn/wto-kinh-te-toan-cau-van-dung-vung-truoc-thue-quan-100251029160214409.htm