Cuban foreign minister stresses need to address asymmetries in finance and world trade

HAVANA, Cuba, Feb 8 (ACN) Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla said today on Twitter that the economic and health crisis reflects the urgency of facing old asymmetries in finances and world trade and the need to establish a fair and democratic international order in light of the financial and health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A recent World Trade Organization report notes that COVID-19 represents an unprecedented disruption to the global economy and trade, with production and consumption plunging worldwide.

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) points out that the rapid spread of COVID-19 and the measures adopted by governments have had a serious impact on the top global economies as many productive activities stop and countries close their border and paved the way for a sharp rise in unemployment, especially in the United States, with the resulting decline of the demand for goods and services, and the greatest contraction in world output since World War II.