WEF2022 – De-globalization, Getting The Balance Right

We've heard a lot of talk about de-globalization recently. Thirty years plus of an increasingly seamless global economy is said by some to be coming any day now to a bumpy stop as a result of protectionism, populism, the Covid19 pandemic and now, sadly, international conflict. Personally, I wasn't convinced when I first heard this being suggested and after various conversations over the past three days here in Davos I am now even less so.

Instead what I see happening, and it's already underway, is a re-balancing of global trade. This is about more than simply shifting source of supply from one country to another. It's going to need to consider ESG factors, investments in automation, adding resilience through multiple sourcing arrangements and breaking the time honored position of driving down a few, heavily concentrated, suppliers in return for maximum volume. Ultimately cost alone will no longer be the primary concern because as many businesses have found to their