IN A RECENT working paper penned with associates, Gita Gopinath, the first deputy MD of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), expresses concerns over the new protectionism in global trade. The paper compares the protectionism by countries amid the Russia-Ukraine war to decoupling that took place decades ago between the U.S. and erstwhile U.S.S.R.-led geopolitical blocs during the Cold War. She says unlike the early years of the Cold War, a set of nonaligned ‘connector’ countries are serving as a bridge between blocs today, adding resilience to global trade.
Also, at the 20th World Congress of the International Economic Association in December 2023, Gopinath discussed the potential onset of Cold War-II and its implications for the global economy. Her suggestions to policymakers — seek multilateral approaches for common interests, adopt non-discriminatory plurilateral tie-ups and restrict unilateral policy actions.
Gopinath leads IMF’s work on surveillance and related policies, and oversees research and flagship publications. She also represents the fund at multilateral fora and maintains contacts with member governments, board members, media and other institutions. She served as IMF chief economist 2019 to 2022. — Joe C. Mathew