🛒🌐 Will countries be able to ensure their independence in imports?

Especially for the Valdai Club session at the EEF-2023, titled “Open Far East in the World Economy: Achievements and Plans for the Future,” we created a videoinfographic on import substitution and import independence.

#Valdai_EEF #imports #economy

🗣🗣🗣

📊 Especially for the 20th Annual Meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club, we created an infographic on GDP of major economies and government debt. Follow this link to find the full infographic.

#VALDAI2023 #valdai_infogaphics #GDP #GovernmentDebt #economy

🗣🗣🗣

🇮🇱 It can be expected that the Israeli economy, in the event of a protracted confrontation with Hamas, will face difficulties that were generally characteristic earlier, during the period of the Al-Aqsa intifada.

By the end of the second quarter of 2023, protest activity and the delayed consequences of the pandemic had revealed a number of problems that could be layered on top of the typical difficulties for the Israeli economy during the escalation periods in the Middle East conflict.

However, there are also what could be called “anchors of stability”, that enable the state to cope with current challenges, albeit not without losses, writes Elizaveta Yakimova.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/the-economics-of-conflict-the-impact-of-the-war/

#EconomicStatecraft #Israel #economy

🗣🗣🗣

🇫🇮 Despite all its previous achievements and innovative potential, the Finnish economy is currently beset by a number of serious structural problems, including:

🔹 a decline in production and a slowdown in economic growth,

🔹 significant consumer and industrial inflation,

🔹 high unemployment, a shortage of skilled labour,

🔹 a chronic budget deficit with a rising public debt,

🔹 a negative trade balance, and a decline in foreign trade, especially with Russia, which had been one of Finland’s most important trade and economic partners for decades.

Globalisation, which once had a significant beneficial impact on the Finnish economy, is now in a transitional stage, and Finland’s position is no exception, as there is growing evidence that the country has begun to lag behind in terms of investment attractiveness, education, competencies and labour resources, Azam Muradov writes.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/finland-in-pursuit-of-a-welfare-society/

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #Finland #economy

🗣🗣🗣

⏰ TODAY at 2:00 p.m. Moscow time, the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion dedicated to the financial settlements of the BRICS countries.

❓In what form are new settlement mechanisms possible within the BRICS framework?
❓What problems may arise during the implementation of various financial projects?
❓How universal can such mechanisms be?
❓What factors will determine the competitiveness of new mechanisms?
❓What can be done within the framework of the Russian presidency of BRICS to develop the initiative on new financial mechanisms?

Participants in the discussion will try to answer these and other questions.

Links to the live broadcast of the discussion will be posted on all online platforms of the Valdai Club: on the website, X (formerly Twitter), VKontakte, Telegram and Dzen. 

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #BRICS #economy #finance

🗣🗣🗣

🎥 LIVE: at 2:00 p.m. Moscow time, the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion dedicated to the financial settlements of the BRICS countries.

https://vk.com/video-214192832_456239181

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #BRICS #economy #finance

🗣🗣🗣

🪙 Alternatives to the Dollar: Financial Settlement Mechanisms for a Multipolar World

On March 18, 2024, the Valdai Club hosted an expert discussion dedicated to financial settlements within the BRICS.

💬 Moderator Ivan Timofeev recalled that, according to the final declaration of the 2023 BRICS summit, the relevant departments of the member countries had to work out possible mechanisms for financial settlements. The talk was about creating a system that was not hostile to the West, but functional and protected from politicisation by third countries. The results achieved to date, in the form of ideas and projects, are planned to be presented at the summit in Kazan.

💬 The world understands that the unipolar financial system centred around the US dollar does not function properly, Paulo Nogueira Batista Jr., Vice President of the New Development Bank (NDB) (2015-2017), and Executive Director at the IMF (2007-2015), noted during the discussion. The dollar's position is undermined by a number of factors. These include both problems in the American economy and Washington's use of the dollar as a weapon, particularly against Russia and Iran. At the same time, geopolitical changes play a significant role. The world is moving towards multipolarity, and this requires a multipolar financial system. The question is whether BRICS can offer it. He considers possible steps in this direction to be the creation of a common currency basket under the code name R5, the development of a payment and settlement system to replace SWIFT, and the development of settlements in national currencies.

💬 John Gong, Vice-President for Research and Strategy at the Israeli branch of the University of International Business and Economics, and an expert at the China Forum, outlined the main avenues for finding an alternative to the dollar. First, we are talking about creating a common currency at the level of the New Development Bank. For now, it is difficult to say anything concrete about the prospects of this project, since a number of practical problems have not yet been resolved. Second, in Hong Kong, together with the UAE, an experiment was conducted to create a so-called currency bridge to carry out transactions bypassing the dollar. On this path, according to John Gong, some success has already been achieved. Third, one of the currencies of the member countries, most likely the yuan, may be promoted to the role of an alternative to the dollar, at least within the BRICS framework. The idea of a currency bridge seems to be the most viable option, but the analyst emphasised that there is no need to limit oneself to only one of the areas and it makes sense to develop everything at the same time.

💬 Arvind Gupta, Head and Co-Founder of the Digital India Foundation, noted that the BRICS group is not yet ripe for the introduction of a single currency. Therefore, it may make sense to focus on developing interaction between national payment systems. He called trust an extremely significant factor in this aspect, adding that it will be easier to achieve if development is based on the use of public rather than private digital infrastructure. It is also important that this infrastructure is not controlled by any one country, he argued.

💬 Ibrahim Karsany, Economic Consultant, Dubai Public Policy Research Centre, considers the idea of multipolarity to be internally contradictory and prefers to talk about diversity and diversification to avoid any form of domination. He believes there is support for the system of Western domination in international organisations created after the Second World War, that is, in the system of the Bretton Woods institutions. Accordingly, BRICS needs to develop an alternative to these institutions, and not only in the field of financial settlements.

https://valdaiclub.com/events/posts/articles/alternatives-to-the-dollar-financial-settlement-mechanisms-for-a-multipolar-world/

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #BRICS #economy #finance

🗣🗣🗣

🌏 Speaking at the Russian Foreign Ministry on June 14, 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed the key principles of the security architecture of Eurasia. The idea itself was voiced in the president’s message to the Federal Assembly on February 29. It is highly likely that it will become one of the supporting structures of the new Russian vision of security on the continent.

The principles revealed by the president indicate that Eurasian security will be understood comprehensively. It implies not only military-political issues, but also other areas.

First of all, we are talking about economics. Economic security issues were explicitly identified as a separate dimension and include a wide range of issues - from poverty and inequality to climate and the environment.

However, the further reference of the president’s speech to the policy of sanctions and the reliability of deposits in the debt obligations of Western states suggests that the key aspect of the economic dimension of Eurasian security architecture may be precisely the question of using the economy as a weapon; to protect against its use for political purposes.

The Eurasian economic security system can become a flexible and decentralised set of mechanisms that reduce “dependence on interdependence,” giving rise to a new reality of international economic relations, writes Ivan Timofeev, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/eurasia-s-security-system-the-economic-aspect/

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #Eurasia #security #economy

🗣🗣🗣