Ribadong Boao Forum Secretary-General Reveals in Briefing
"Everyone Greatly Worried About What Might Happen"
As the Boao Forum in China, often called the Davos Forum of Asia, opened, remarks aimed at checking the United States were made one after another. During the forum's emphasis on a bleak global economic outlook and uncertainties, the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) incident was indirectly mentioned.
According to the Chinese local media Caijing Daily, Li Baodong, former Vice Minister of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Secretary-General of the Boao Forum, said at a press briefing on the opening day of the forum on the 28th, "Some major countries' banks have already gone bankrupt, and everyone is greatly worried about what will happen next." Although this remark came while emphasizing global economic uncertainties, it is interpreted as targeting the SVB incident, which is effectively increasing risks in the global financial system.
Secretary-General Li continued, "Challenges such as geopolitical conflicts, downward economic pressures, and global warming are connected to the future," and emphasized, "In the face of these challenges, the international community's demand and aspiration to strengthen cooperation and promote development are growing stronger." He added, "There are differing views and claims within the international community on how to accept and respond to these challenges," and explained, "We hope the Boao Forum will prepare solutions through open and inclusive discussions on these issues."
Entrepreneurs attending the event also expressed to the on-site press their concerns about the recently spreading supply chain instability, claiming they are under 'unprecedented pressure.' The Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that George Zhu, CEO of Vital Membrane Materials, whom they met on site, said, "The company is considering establishing joint ventures in other countries and moving parts of the production chain outside China to prevent further decoupling risks with the United States." The CEO of this Chinese company producing materials for electronic products pointed out that half of their customers are overseas and that they are particularly paying attention to the ripple effects of US-China relations, stating, "The current changes in the supply chain are not a natural market economy but are politically manipulated and led."
The Boao Forum, held under the theme "An Uncertain World: Facing Challenges with Unity and Cooperation, Promoting Development with Openness and Inclusiveness," is attended by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Ivorian Prime Minister Patrick Achi, and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, among others.
In addition, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, former People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan, former Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee, and about 2,000 participants from over 50 countries are reported to attend the event. From Korea, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Jeju Governor Oh Young-hoon are attending. Chairman Chey is scheduled to participate as a panelist in the session on "Measuring Corporate ESG (Environment, Social, and Governance) Performance" on the 29th.
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