Every month, the UN trade and development agency (UNCTAD) provides an update on what’s happening in the world of global trade. In March, the focus was on tariffs, and the report revealed that, whilst global trade reached a record $33 trillion last year, the outlook for 2025 remains uncertain, with mounting tensions, protectionist policies and trade disputes signalling likely disruption in the coming months.
Communities in developing countries like Madagascar rely on exports, such as lobster, to survive.
UN News: If we do see a slowdown in the global economy, who is likely to suffer the most?
Luz Maria de la Mora: Developing countries. Ninety-five developing countries depend on their exports, which puts them at the mercy of international pricing trends and on the growth of the global economy.
These countries need an international trading system that works, that offers certainty, where they know which regulations they face and where the rules are not changed without notice, without negotiation, without any previous warning of what is coming.
That is why it is so important that multilateralism remains in place.