It’s a week of international meetings, reports and statistics, as the world’s finance ministers meet in the US, following Trump’s imposition of wide-ranging tariffs earlier this month.
Global meetings
The World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) will host their annual spring meetings in Washington DC this week, with the world still reeling from US president Donald Trump’s introduction of major new tariffs.
The IMF will publish its World Economic Outlook report tomorrow, which is likely to examine the potential impact of the tariffs, while sessions at its meeting will include close-ups on what businesses can do “in an uncertain world”. There are also specific sessions on how regions like Africa and south east Asia could respond to the changing world economy.
The head of the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, said in a statement at the start of this month that “we are still assessing the macroeconomic implications of the announced tariff measures”, but that “we appeal to the US and its trading partners to work constructively to resolve trade tensions and reduce uncertainty”.
Manufacturing stats
The UK, EU, Japan and India will all get insights into the strength of their manufacturing and services sectors this week, as S&P Global publishes its latest PMIs tomorrow (23 April).
The previous UK manufacturing PMI, published at the start of April, saw the sector fall to a 17-month low of 44.9 – meaning production is falling. It marked a fifth straight month of decline and was largely the result of a fall in orders.
Observers will be keeping a close eye on whether the number ticks up or continues its slump as tariffs continue to generate uncertainty – with UK Export Finance chief executive Tim Reid suggesting the challenge they pose to manufacturers is unprecedented, in an interview with the Guardian.
The Eurozone fared better last month, witnessing a manufacturing output boost “for the first time in two years”, the S&P Global report at the time noted. This month’s figures could also be weighed on by tariffs, however, as the EU considers new restrictions on US goods entering the bloc should ongoing tariff negotiations fail, according to Bloomberg.
Energy talk
The IMF and World Bank meetings aren’t the only major conferences taking place this week, as London plays host to the Summit on the Future of Energy Security on Thursday and Friday.
Co-hosted by energy secretary Ed Miliband, the event will look at the “geopolitical, technological and economic factors affecting energy security at the national and international level”, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Trade in “major fuels” and the increased importance of clean energy supply chains will both be major themes of the conference, as will the “availability of the minerals and metals required for many clean energy technologies”.
While the event is invitation-only, it will be available to watch live online here, and could offer a hint at how the UK will approach trade in critical minerals and green tech as the US targets imports of the latter with more alarmingly high new tariffs.
Other dates for the diary
- Tuesday: G24 ministers and central bank governors to meet in Washington
- Wednesday: Huw Pill, Bank of England chief economist, to deliver speech at Leeds University Business School
- Thursday: Ifo business climate survey results for Germany published
- Friday: Japan inflation rate data published
- Saturday: White House Correspondents’ Association dinner
- Sunday: London Marathon
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