ON MONDAY LOCAL TIME, THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT (UNCTAD) RELEASED THE "2022 TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT REPORT", WARNING THAT CONTINUED INTEREST RATE HIKES IN DEVELOPED ECONOMIES COULD PUSH THE GLOBAL ECONOMY INTO RECESSION AND SUBSEQUENTLY INTO LONG-TERM STAGNATION, WITH DEVELOPING COUNTRIES IN AFRICA AND LATIN AMERICA BEING THE FIRST TO BEAR THE BRUNT.THIS WARNING COMES AT A TIME WHEN THE FEDERAL RESERVE AND OTHER MAJOR CENTRAL BANKS ARE RAPIDLY RAISING BORROWING COSTS TO CURB SOARING INFLATION, AND PEOPLE ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY UNEASY ABOUT THIS APPROACH.THE REPORT PREDICTS THAT THE GLOBAL ECONOMY WILL GROW BY 2.5% IN 2022, AND THE ECONOMIC GROWTH RATE WILL SLOW DOWN TO 2.2% IN 2023. ALL REGIONS HAVE BEEN IMPACTED BY THE SLOWDOWN IN ECONOMIC GROWTH, BUT DEVELOPING COUNTRIES HAVE BEEN PARTICULARLY AFFECTED.THE DEBT CRISIS IN SOUTH AND WEST ASIA IS INTENSIFYING. SRI LANKA HAS FALLEN INTO SOVEREIGN DEFAULT, AFGHANISTAN IS STILL IN DEBT TROUBLE, AND TÜRKIYE AND PAKISTAN ARE FACING SOARING BOND YIELDS.REBECCA GREENSPAN, SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT, STATED THAT THERE IS STILL TIME TO PULL THE ECONOMY BACK FROM THE BRINK OF RECESSION, AND COUNTRIES HAVE TOOLS TO STABILIZE INFLATION AND SUPPORT ALL VULNERABLE GROUPS. BUT THE CURRENT COURSE OF ACTION IS HARMING THE MOST VULNERABLE GROUPS, ESPECIALLY IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, AND MAY LEAD TO A GLOBAL RECESSION.THE REPORT POINTS OUT THAT THE MONETARY AND FISCAL POLICIES OF DEVELOPED ECONOMIES MAY LEAD TO GLOBAL RECESSION AND LONG-TERM STAGNATION. RAPID INTEREST RATE HIKES AND FISCAL TIGHTENING IN DEVELOPED ECONOMIES, AS WELL AS THE CRISIS CAUSED BY THE SUPERPOSITION OF THE COVID-19 EPIDEMIC AND THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE CONFLICT, HAVE TURNED THE SLOWDOWN OF GLOBAL ECONOMIC GROWTH INTO A DOWNTURN, AND IT IS UNLIKELY THAT THERE WILL BE A SOFT LANDING.THE INSTITUTION ESTIMATES THAT FOR EVERY ONE PERCENTAGE POINT INCREASE IN THE FEDERAL RESERVE'S KEY INTEREST RATE, THE ECONOMIC OUTPUT OF OTHER DEVELOPED COUNTRIES WILL DECREASE BY 0.5% OVER THE NEXT THREE YEARS, WHILE THE ECONOMIC OUTPUT OF POOR COUNTRIES WILL DECREASE BY 0.8%.RAISING INTEREST RATES ALONE CANNOT REDUCE INFLATIONTHE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT ALSO WARNED THAT THE FEDERAL RESERVE'S INTEREST RATE HIKES THIS YEAR WILL REDUCE THE ECONOMIC OUTPUT OF POOR COUNTRIES BY $360 BILLION WITHIN THREE YEARS, AND FURTHER TIGHTENING OF POLICIES WILL CAUSE MORE DAMAGE.THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT HAS STATED THAT "FOCUSING SOLELY ON MONETARY POLICY WITHOUT ADDRESSING SUPPLY SIDE ISSUES IN TRADE, ENERGY, AND FOOD MARKETS MAY INDEED EXACERBATE THE COST OF LIVING CRISIS." "IN THE CURRENT CONTEXT OF CHALLENGES AND INCREASING UNCERTAINTY IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN, MONETARY POLICY ALONE CANNOT REDUCE INFLATIONTHE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT SUGGESTS THAT COUNTRIES SHOULD FOCUS ON WAGE GROWTH AND CONTINUE TO CREATE EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES. INCREASE INVESTMENT IN INFRASTRUCTURE TO PROMOTE EMPLOYMENT, IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY, ENHANCE ENERGY EFFICIENCY, AND REDUCE GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT ALSO URGES COUNTRIES TO ADOPT MORE PRAGMATIC STRATEGIES, INCLUDING STRATEGIC PRICE CONTROLS, PROFIT TAXES, ANTI-MONOPOLY MEASURES, AND STRICTER REGULATION OF COMMODITY SPECULATION.SPECIAL STATEMENT: THE CONTENT OF THE ABOVE WORKS (INCLUDING VIDEOS, IMAGES, OR AUDIO) IS UPLOADED AND PUBLISHED BY USERS OF THE SELF MEDIA PLATFORM "DA FENG HAO" UNDER PHOENIX NETWORK. THIS PLATFORM ONLY PROVIDES INFORMATION STORAGE SPACE SERVICES.NOTICE: THE CONTENT ABOVE (INCLUDING THE VIDEOS, PICTURES AND AUDIOS IF ANY) IS UPLOADED AND POSTED BY THE USER OF DAFENG HAO, WHICH IS A SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM AND MERELY PROVIDES INFORMATION STORAGE SPACE SERVICES.”