Though the snows of Davos may obscure their view, the political and business elite attending 2019’s World Economic Forum clearly need some visionary thinking. Gone are the days when the annual shindig in the Swiss mountain resort was a chance for self-congratulation. This year, the widely shared concern is that the system of globalised capitalism dominant since the Reagan-Thatcher years is on a steep and slippery slope.
The WEF has modestly adopted “Globalisation 4.0” as this year’s summit theme. Some may wonder how the world ever missed “Globalisation 3.0”. At any rate, Davos has rightly not given up on globalisation, even if this year’s attendees have a distinctly populist streak, such as newly inaugurated President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil.
The reality is that globalisation faces its most serious challenge in decades. The post-Lehman crash of 2008-09 shook capitalism to its roots. It is now under intellectual assault, with the figure who used to be seen as the leader of the free world, the US president, railing against it. The role of global corporations has come under special scrutiny. Mr Trump’s America First policies raise awkward questions about where their loyalties really lie.