Even before a single delegate has set foot on the snowy streets of Davos in the Swiss mountains, it is clear that this year’s meeting is likely to be the most significant in the World Economic Forum’s 37-year history.
To employ a highly relevant saying: “Nothing concentrates the mind so firmly as impending execution”. In the past few months, the global economy has at times been pivoted on the edge of the abyss, and to decide whether to look down or not wasn’t really an option. The floor of the pit just seemed to be racing towards us.
Policy-makers dusted off their economic history textbooks and did what they could in a desperate bid for salvation. More of them than ever will be crowding into the Davos conference centre to review recent events and debate future options. In the pages of this special issue, The Banker makes its own contribution to the discussion.
The emergency nature of such policy-making does not preclude that the decisions made turn out to be both profound and correct – it is impossible to judge at present and this can only be done in the light of history.
The UK’s stance in recapitalising its banks and opting for fiscal stimulus, for example, may turn out to be trailblazing or disastrous depending on how the country’s economy fares in the coming months and years.
UK chancellor of the exchequer Alistair Darling opens our Davos content with an explanation of his approach. Many other voices are added to the debate – from the central bank governors of Malaysia and India to the European commissioner for monetary affairs, as well as investors and bank CEOs from around the world.
The Banker’s editors have done their best to explore key issues thrown up by the crisis – such as the future of securitisation and the correct regulatory response – ensuring that Davos participants are neither short of facts nor opinions.
Symbolic of the topsy-turvy times we live in is our new financial health ranking, which places countries such as Bolivia and Moldova above the US and the UK. For an appreciation of this strange new world, read on.