WEF talks climate

The risks of catastrophic weather and flooding from climate change are exercising business leaders heading into next week’s World Economic Forum meeting in Davos.

An annual WEF report – based on a survey of about 1,000 respondents drawn from the Davos community of business leaders, politicians, civil society and academics – shows climate change has become the dominant concern for three years running. Data theft and cyberattacks have joined climate change in the top tier of worries, but respondents also highlighted anxiety about worsening international relations and the risk that poses for the world economy.

About 90% of people in the survey, conducted in September and October, expected international trading rules and agreements to weaken further as President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda undermines the architecture on which global trade was built.

“With global trade and economic growth at risk in 2019, there’s a more urgent need than ever to renew the architecture of international co-operation,” said Borge Brende, president of the WEF. “We simply don’t have the gunpowder to deal with the kind of slowdown that current dynamics might lead us to.

“What we need now is coordinated, concerted action to sustain growth and to tackle the grave threats facing our world today,” he said.

The growing risk of Britain crashing out of the EU without a Brexit deal is also worrying global institutions and will feature at the meetings next week in the Swiss Alps. –

What we need now is co-ordinated, concerted action to sustain growth