Trade fragmentation

India must adjust to emerging trends

Following a contraction of 1.2 per cent in 2023, global merchandise trade volume is expected to grow 2.6 per cent this year, and 3.3 per cent next year. Yet, deepening fault lines and growing tensions between trading blocs have put cross-border trade relations at risk. Multilateral bodies like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) have thus rightly underscored the issue of restrictions in trade flows in the post-pandemic world, and the need to preserve the gains from economic openness. The latest World Economic Outlook of the IMF notes that since the start of the Russia-Ukraine