Global trade recovered in the last quarter of 2020, reducing the overall decline for the year to about 9 per cent, finds an UNCTAD study. Some of the less competitive countries lost their market share during the pandemic while competitive ones improved their share in global trade. The recovery of Q4 2020 was largely driven by the trade of goods from and to developing countries, especially by the very strong performance of East Asian economies, including China, Taiwan and South Korea.
The effect of Covid19 on global trade was most severe during the first half of 2020, with a drop in value of about 15 per cent. Global trade began to recover in Q3 2020 and more strongly in Q4 2020. The recovery in the second half of 2020 was largely due to the rebound of trade in goods rather than in services. During the pandemic, Vietnam, Uganda, China, Switzerland, Turkey and Taiwan experienced relatively better export performance.
In contrast, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Colombia and…