Davos gloom
Economics editor Chris Giles on the lessons from perhaps the gloomiest Davos meeting in history
World Economic Forum - Davos 2009
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Leaders of the business, political and philanthropic worlds are gathering in Davos, Switzerland, for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. The unrelenting economic gloom and the fragility of the banking system have cast a cloud over the global agenda and are likely to dominate discussions.
Davos diary
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, Chris Giles and Peter Thal Larsen offer their highlights of this year’s meeting
Davos backs plan to keep WEF in town
A high proportion of voters in a referendum backed plans to extend the town’s conference centre. Under a deal with the council, the World Economic Forum has promised to remain in Davos for 10 years if the scheme is approved
Acrimony dashes Doha hopes
The completion of the international trade round appeared as far away as ever – with a gathering of ministers at the World Economic Forum in Davos descending into acrimony
No consensus on restoring trust in business
Amid surveys showing steep falls in chief executives’ confidence levels and trust in business, industry delegates to Davos struggled to agree on tackling the crisis, other than the need for more collaboration
Lack of inspiration unites Davos delegates
If there was a unifying theme to this year’s World Economic Forum, it was that the participants were sorely lacking in confidence. Unfortunately, they had precious little idea where to obtain this precious commodity
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Video
Zhu Min
The Bank of China executive vice presidents sees Chinese rebound this year
Kofi Annan
The former UN secretary-general talks about the future of globalisation and the need to change the way we do business
Bill and Melinda Gates
The philanthropists talk about the outlook for global aid amid the financial crisis
Laura Tyson
The economist says the US will need a ‘bad bank’ style solution as well as the economic stimulus
Davos Roundtable
Gideon Rachman and the editors of Die Zeit and Foreign Affairs discuss Russia, China and Obama
Justin Lin
The World Bank’s chief economist talks to Richard Edgar about the economic outlook for 2009
Comment
Finger pointing and flagging spirits
The usual Davos spirit of consensus at the World Economic Forum showed signs of fraying at this year’s meeting, writes John Gapper
Why Davos Man is waiting for Obama to save him
However easy it is to blame the US for global economic woes, it is also to the US that the world looks for a solution. Concerted action is needed, says Martin Wolf
Davos and the spirit of mutual misunderstanding
This year’s forum showed what happens when the world economy ceases to finance global co-operation and goodwill, writes John Gapper
When globalisation goes into reverse
World leaders are under pressure to respond to voters who are angry, frightened and demanding protection, writes Gideon Rachman
FT Guide to Davos
The best and the worst of times
The annual gathering of the world’s elite comes into its own in a crisis. There could hardly be a better moment, writes John Gapper
Audio roundtable: debating the downturn
Amid increasing economic gloom, six of the FT’s top journalists examine the issues likely to dominate the agenda at Davos 2009
Forgotten agenda: health for wealth
Andrew Jack considers the affects of the downturn on world health
Meet the mayor: When the local goes global
Hans Peter Michel, the mayor of Davos, tells Haig Simonian how he reconciles the interests of his town with the needs of the annual meeting
Expanding the brand: New networks multiply
The World Economic Forum is expanding far beyond its Davos roots, writes Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson
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