(AFP) – Developing countries should reach the rapid commercial agreements with the United States at the “earliest possible,” said the president of the World Bank on AFP Friday, after a busy week financial leaders in Washington.
Ajay Banga was interviewed by the AFP in the spring meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, which have been held this year under a cloud of uncertainty about the launch of stop rates of President Donald Trump.
The Bank has been advising developing countries that quickly obtain an agreement with the United States and then concentrate attention on cutting commercial barriers and increasing regional flows of goods, Banga said.
“It must negotiate commercial systems with the USA. As soon as possible (opportunity),” he said. “If you delay, it hurts everyone.”
Trump’s tariffs have discarded financial markets, have sent to increased and scared investors and consumers.
Since he returned to office in January, the US leader has imposed a 10 percent “baseline” rate for most countries, with much higher tasks in China and specific levies of the 25 percent sector in areas that include steel, aluminum and unvotted cars.
Hello, it also introduced much higher tariffs in the boxes of countries, which since then have stopped temporarily, the bats of having an unfair trade balance with the United States.
Banga also approached criticism level by the United States Secretary of the United States, Scott Besunt at the bank earlier this week.
Besent criticized China’s “absurd” country status in the country and asked the managing director of Banga and the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, to “win the confidence of the administration.”
“I don’t think he was wrong,” Banga said about Besent’s comments about China.
“A country that is the size of China and the capacity of China, at some point, should no longer take money from the IBRD,” he said, referring to the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, an arm of the World Bank that largely.
Such movement would require the support of the Executive Board of the World Bank, which is composed of the Member States.
China, said Banga, before $ 750 million from IBRD last year, while paying billions of dollars to the institution in payments and donations.
“My opinion is that I have reduced it to 750 (million), and I am trying to find a way to deal with China to tear it down even more,” he said. “I want to do it. And that is what I am talking about with the Chinese.”
Banga said that the criticism of the Trump administration to the World Bank, which included “overreach of expansive policies”, were not unusual, citing newly elected governments in countries such as France, Japan and Korea.
“I maintain that the people of the count, this is a perfectly constructive request, to put it, tell me and show me that you are the son of the people who advance the interests of my taxpayer or my country,” he said.
“I take it in that spirit,” he said. “There is nothing wrong with that.”
Since he took the holiday of the development lender with headquarters in Washington in 2023, Banga has pressed to rationalize operations and encourage the participation of the private sector, while focusing on the creation of employment and electricity connectivity.
Among the current priorities of the bank is an impulse with the African Development Bank to connect 300 million people in sub -Saharan Africa to electricity by 2030, a process that will require a fixed amount of new energy online.
“You must try to obtain (energy) in the best accessible way and the lowest possible cost,” said Banga, a suggestion that, in addition to renewable energy, nuclear and gas, it could help provide a base load: two energy sources in the World Bank.
The Bank Executive Board will discuss its energy strategy in June, said Banga, added that both the nuclear and gas financing would probably be on the agenda.
Banga said the bank is also pressing to promote the creation of employment of the private sector in developing countries, beyond simply outsourceing the work of advanced economies.
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