March 2020: President Chairman
March 2020: President Chairman
March 2020: President Chairman
President Chairman
March 2020
The time has come to update our Top Risks 2020,
taking into account how the coronavirus has accelerated
the trends that worry us most.
Introduction
In January, we wrote that this year was a tipping point, with a historic shift
in globalization; a weakened US leadership; the rise of populism within the
world’s democracies; the rise of an alternative Chinese economic, political and
technological model; and the decline of an aggrieved and interventionist Russia
pushing the world into a geopolitical recession. We now face the first global crisis
of our geopolitical recession … a coronavirus pandemic. The timing isn’t good.
Economic cycles
Period of economic
recession (duration of US
real GDP contractions)
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
Source: Eurasia Group
We warned in January that globalization was under siege; we were more right
about that than we would like to be. Travel to the US from Europe and China, and
travel to Europe from just about anywhere, has now been halted. The coronavirus
outbreak has dealt a body blow to the global flow of goods and services, accelerating
the process we wrote about. The public health emergency has also deepened
the geopolitical recession, as the US shows little interest in quarterbacking an
international response, and China aims to take advantage of the vacuum. More
broadly, the pandemic has forced all nations to look inward, speeding both this
recession and the process of deglobalization.
3 US/China
Attempts by Washington and Beijing to explain coronavirus and its containment to their respective domestic
audiences will intensify recriminations between the two governments.
6 Geopolitical Europe
Coronavirus exacerbates transatlantic tensions, but it will also fully occupy European leaders at a time when
they would like to become much more assertive toward both the US and China in many areas.
8 Shia crescendo
Coronavirus eases the risks of failed US policy in Iran, but amplifies them in Iraq and Syria.
10 Turkey
Coronavirus in and around Turkey will weaken both Erdogan and his foreign rivals.
After the election, the vote could be contested on grounds of tampering, procedural flaws, and/
or historically low turnout. Whoever wins would lack full authority in the eyes of Americans
and the international community. The US Congress could become even more dysfunctional
than we expected in January, not least because of teething pains as it learns to work remotely—
all amid a crisis over the vote. Finally, on foreign policy, the coronavirus will cause the US to
turn inward and increase its isolation from the world. Less US leadership and reassurance to
allies will be the result.
KEY TAKEAWAY
KEY TAKEAWAY
US/China
In January, risk #3 argued that as US-China decoupling occurred,
tensions would provoke a more explicit clash over national security,
influence, and values. The two sides would continue to use economic
tools in this struggle—sanctions, export controls, and boycotts—
with shorter fuses and goals that were more explicitly political.
Confrontation would grow over Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Uighurs, the South China
Sea, and a host of other issues.
Washington and Beijing view the outbreak as the next round in their geopolitical rivalry, and
that dynamic will continue to shape the global response to the crisis. US officials blame Beijing
for causing what they pointedly call the “Chinese” coronavirus and are wary of emergency
coronavirus funds from the IMF being used to repay countries’ debts to China under the Belt
and Road Initiative. Beijing, eager to counter US criticism, will use its success at coronavirus
containment to tout its governance model. It will provide financial and medical assistance to
friendly countries (including more and more US allies) channeled, when possible, via its own
currency and through Chinese-led institutions. As the election nears, a defensive Trump will
deflect criticism of his handling of the outbreak by heaping more blame on China, while more
confident Chinese authorities will respond in kind (recent moves by Beijing to ban US journalists
from the mainland and Hong Kong are particularly noteworthy on that count). Escalating tensions
will create more uncertainty around the phase one trade deal, US treatment of Huawei and other
Chinese tech firms, and foreign policy flashpoints such as Hong Kong and Taiwan. All this means
that a phase two trade deal is nearly impossible, and escalating tensions could unravel the phase
one deal itself. There’s a growing likelihood that when the coronavirus pandemic is over, the US
and China enter a new cold war.
KEY TAKEAWAY
4
MNCs not to the rescue
In January, our risk #4 described how multinational corporations
(MNCs), far from compensating for the shortcomings of
underperforming national governments on critical issues such
as climate change, poverty reduction, and trade liberalization,
would face new pressures from political officials, both elected and
unelected. Politicians working to manage slowing
global growth, widening inequality, mounting
populist threats, and intensifying security challenges created by new
technologies would assert themselves at the expense of MNCs. In this
more difficult global environment, corporate leaders would be more
focused on their bottom lines, not less.
KEY TAKEAWAY
With a population density nearly three times that of China, a weaker health and sanitation
infrastructure, and a far less autocratic government, India is acutely vulnerable to a coronavirus
outbreak. So far, it has handled it well—the Indian government was one of the first to impose
draconian border measures, with no foreign tourists allowed to enter the country until at least
15 April. But the challenges for India going forward will only increase. There is a significant
risk that misinformation about the coronavirus will be targeted at minority communities and/
or sow confusion, possibly sparking sectarian violence. The financial stress for India and
emerging markets generally will offset benefits from the drop in oil prices. India is
likely to see significant capital outflows, currency devaluation, and renewed urgency
for economic reforms. However, those reforms are unlikely to happen, as Modi’s
economic team is still dominated by statists, and
the government will continue to prioritize its
nationalist agenda over reforms.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Geopolitical Europe
In January, risk #6 described how the European Union aimed to defend
itself more aggressively against competing economic and political
blocs. On regulation, antitrust officials would continue to battle
North American tech giants. On trade, the EU would become
more assertive on rules enforcement and retaliatory tariffs.
On security, officials would try to use the world’s largest market to break
down cross-border barriers to military trade and tech development.
This more independent Europe would generate friction with both
the US and China.
KEY TAKEAWAY
The global focus on coronavirus will come at the expense of attention paid
to climate change. Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
investing mandates will become weaker in implementation if not in spirit, as
investors and companies pursue recovery and growth above all else. Countries
will utilize their fiscal space on targeted measures to blunt the impact of the
coronavirus, and whatever is left over for broad fiscal stimulus will only
be partially dedicated to “green” projects, and to varying degrees across
countries. Further, collapsing oil prices will undercut the competitiveness
of cleaner alternative energy sources. With large-scale protest activity
diminished because of social distancing, civil society actors will turn to
cyber and online tools to apply pressure on companies and governments,
most of which will have less appetite and ability to respond to climate
change. The immediate risk of a clash between politics and economics
over climate change significantly diminishes in the short term, even if the
overarching threat of climate change remains as real as ever.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Shia crescendo
In January, risk #8 detailed how the failure of US policy toward Iran,
Iraq, and Syria—the major Shia-led nations in the Middle East—
would create significant risks for regional stability. These included
a lethal conflict with Iran; upward pressure on oil prices; an Iraq
caught between Iran’s orbit and state failure; and a rogue Syria fused
to Russia and Iran. Neither Trump nor Iran’s leaders want all-out war, we argued,
but deadly skirmishes inside Iraq between US and Iranian forces are probable. The
likelihood would increase that the Iraqi government would expel US troops this year,
and popular resistance from some Iraqis against Iran’s influence there would strain the
Iraqi state—OPEC’s second-largest oil producer. Feckless US policy in Syria would also
drive regional risk in 2020.
The coronavirus outbreak will weaken Iran, Iraq, and Syria. That will lessen the threat of US
military conflict with Iran but amplify the effects of failed US policy on the latter two nations
and the region. Iran is struggling to confront one of the world’s largest outbreaks of coronavirus.
Tehran wasn’t looking for war with the US before the coronavirus and certainly does not want
one now. But it will continue making trouble in the region and wage a public relations battle
against Washington’s refusal to meaningfully ease sanctions in
the face of a humanitarian crisis. As we wrote in January, ill-
conceived US policy has been a cause of instability across the
region. Iraq is now even more at risk of state failure—
with a collapse in oil prices and without a government—
and could be pushed over the cliff by an outbreak
there. That would be a boon for a resurgent Islamic
State and potentially force the US to abandon ship.
Syrian reconstruction will also suffer, both if there’s
an outbreak of the coronavirus and because regional
capital will become more constrained as a result of
sharply lower oil prices.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Latin America is one of the least-prepared parts of the world to deal with the coronavirus.
Serious outbreaks across the region, in conjunction with the oil price collapse, will further stoke
the voter anger described in our January report. All the problems we predicted will become
more likely: fiscal balances will deteriorate, currencies will plummet, anger with governments
will rise, public services will fray, and investment flows will diminish. In turn, discontent will
reduce governments’ ability to undertake needed austerity measures in some countries and
further reduce the fiscal space needed to appease protesters in others (for example, Chile).
Amid a collapse in oil prices, the leaders of oil-producing countries such as Brazil, Colombia,
Ecuador, and Mexico will struggle to keep their approval ratings from collapsing. All four
also face fiscal constraints. The outlook is particularly bad for Ecuador (and Argentina,
though for reasons aside from oil); in Brazil, reforms will still
advance, though at a more erratic pace, while in Mexico
a poorly functioning government will worsen the crisis.
KEY TAKEAWAY
10
Turkey
In January, risk #10 described how President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan—who has a long history of provocative behavior in
response to threats, sparking confrontation with both foreign
and domestic critics—has entered a period of steep political
decline. He’s suffering defections from the ruling Justice
and Development Party (AKP) as popular former
allies establish new parties. His ruling
coalition is shaky. Relations with the US would hit new lows,
we forecasted, as likely US sanctions take effect in the first
half of this year, undermining the country’s reputation and
investment climate and putting further pressure on the lira.
Erdogan’s responses to these various challenges would further
damage Turkey’s ailing economy, we warned.
KEY TAKEAWAY
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