The global trading system is in flux, with increased multipolarity and uncertainty. Disruptions in supply chains and concerns about sustainability and national security have caused countries to reexamine trade policies. Dr. Luz Ma de la Mora, Director of UNCTAD’s Division on International Trade and Commodities, joins this episode of The Zeitgeist to discuss the role of multilateralism in global trade, the characteristics of the future trading system, and how international trade can benefit emerging and established economies.



Host

Jeff Rathke, President, AGI

Guests

Luz Maria de la Mora, Director, International Trade and Commodities, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD)

Peter Rashish, Vice President and Director, Geoeconomics Program, AGI



Transcript

Jeff Rathke

Welcome to all of our listeners. Very pleased to have you with us for another episode of The Zeitgeist. I’m joined today on the AGI side by AGI Vice President and Director of our Geoeconomics program, Peter Rashish. Peter, hello.

Peter Rashish

Jeff, good to be with you.

Jeff Rathke

And we are always very pleased to have interesting and accomplished guests with us, and today, I would like to introduce Dr. Luz Ma de la Mora. Thank you for being with us.

Luz Ma de la Mora

Thank you very much for having me, Jeff. Nice to see you.

Jeff Rathke

Same here. Luz Maria de la Mora is the Director of the UN Trade and Development Division on International Trade and Commodities. She was previously the Vice Minister for International Trade in Mexico and has had a career in international trade policy negotiation and trade promotions. I think it’s worth pointing out that during her time as Vice Minister of International Trade for Mexico from 2018 to 2022, Mexico concluded fourteen trade agreements with fifty-one countries, and we are here to talk about the global trading system today.

Global trade is in flux. It is heavily contested politically, also becoming more multipolar. That’s not just because of the policies of the Trump administration here in Washington, but because of other systemic and structural factors. I look forward to talking about this today. Luz Ma, how do you see the state of multilateral cooperation on trade policy? On the one hand, there’s a more multipolar development, even a conflictual one, perhaps, and there’s a greater diversity of actors than before. How do you see this?

Luz Ma de la Mora

Thank you, Jeff. If I could use a word to tell you about how I see the state of multilateral cooperation on trade policy today, I would say it’s “uncertainty.” Uncertainty is basically what international rules and multilateral rules try to address. That’s why we have an international trading system. That’s why we have a World Trade Organization. Let me go a little bit into history, if you’ll allow me. Between 1995 and 2015 (that’s when the WTO started, in 1995), for twenty years, basically, we could say that business operated in a relatively stable and predictable policy environment. We saw a flourishing of international trade, and I would like also to share with you with that here at UNCTAD (UN Trade and Development), we work with the Trade Policy Uncertainty (TPU) Index, and we see that during those years, uncertainty really remained very low because there were rules and rules were observed. This also helped developing countries to integrate into the WTO; today the WTO has 166 members. They were able—and particularly China without a question—were able to use the international market and international trade, international rules to participate in the global economy and also to promote exports.