The Politics of Decoupling

[vimeo]

In the four years that GC has run its annual ‘Politics of’ conference, no theme has generated more interest than this year’s theme of decoupling. We know only too well from working with a wide range of clients on the evolving risk landscape in relations between China and the rest of the world how uncertain and sensitive this issue can be. The sensitivity and the interest are surely linked. 
 
China’s re-emergence as a global economic power was inevitably going to challenge the established patterns of global economic life and governance of the late twentieth century. Over the last two decades a mix of strategic or tactical policy choices and market forces have coupled China to its region, the wider global economy and the machinery of global governance. It is now commonplace to hear calls from some in the US and Europe to limit this exposure – to block off future integration in sensitive areas, or even reverse elements of the status quo. Even actors committed to integration speak of selective decoupling. 
 
Our panels at this year’s conference considered both how feasible this is, and what its implications might be for fixed investment, supply chains and multilateral alignment. We asked how realistic it is to ringfence confrontation, market-based competition and cooperation and convergence. Much of our experience in tracking and anticipating political risk suggests that this could prove difficult in many respects. The implications for investors, corporates and global governance are important and require practical and pragmatic thinking.  
 
Our conference report combines insights and perspectives from GC specialists from our five offices around the world with thematic reviews of key areas we will cover in our panels. We hope you find the sessions interesting, and we look forward to working with you in 2022.
 

You can download the conference report here and watch the sessions on demand using the links below. If you do not have access to Vimeo, you can watch them using the ‘Watch in browser’ link. 

Conference Agenda

Opening remarks
Stephen Adams
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Plenary session: How real is decoupling?
Sir Sebastian Wood KCMG, Sherry Madera, Dr Yu Jie and Gregor Irwin, chaired by Stephen Adams
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The US perspective: in conversation with Lawrence H. Summers
Chaired by Peter Mandelson
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The European perspective
Joerg Wuttke and Françoise Nicolas, chaired by Tom White
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Trade tensions: trends in sourcing and investment strategies
Frank Heemskerk, Hiroshi Matsuura and Dr Yu Jie, chaired by Stephen Adams
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Transatlantic tech policy: a new era for regulatory cooperation?
Rana Foroohar, Elizabeth Denham CBE and Benedict Evans, chaired by Conan D'Arcy
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RMB internationalisation: a GC primer
Thomas Gratowski, Jens Presthus and Rebecca Park
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The future of China-US relations: in conversation with Qin Gang, China's Ambassador to the US
Chaired by Peter Mandelson
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The Southeast Asian perspective: in conversation with Dr Ong Kian Ming
Chaired by Andrew Yeo
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The future of Chinese corporates
Liu Zhen and Patrick Zhong, chaired by Peter Mandelson
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Rethinking the resilience of global standard-setting practices
Emily Taylor, Jamie Susskind and Richard Spearman, chaired by Jon Garvie
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If you would like to talk to our team about any of the issues raised during this event, you can contact our staff by clicking here.