Ben Bernanke, the former chairman of Federal Reserve who helped the United States to navigate through the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression will give his outlook for the world economy at a financial forum in Abu Dhabi next week.
The two-day Global Financial Markets Forum (GFMF) on March 4 and 5, organised by the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, will also feature Jean-Claude Trichet, the former president of the European Central Bank; the former US treasury secretary Lawrence Summers; and James Baker, the former US secretary of state.
Local dignitaries will include Nasser Ahmed Alsowaidi, the chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, the UAE’s Culture Minister, and the Central Bank Governor Sultan bin Nasser Al Suwaidi.
“Dr Bernanke and Mr Trichet oversaw the world’s largest economies during very turbulent times and will be able to offer insightful and valuable analysis of the state of the economy” at the forum, Alex Thursby, the National Bank of Abu Dhabi’s chief executive, said yesterday. “We are confident that 2014 GFMF speakers and panelists will offer insightful and critical analysis of political and policy impacts on global markets.” The GFMF has been hosted annually since 2009 when it began as a low key affair attracting 70 delegates to showcase Abu Dhabi companies. That evolved into a gathering around former policymakers, dropping the sales angle and focusing on debates about the global economy.
Last year, the forum was attended by more than 1,300 people who listened to the former French president Nicolas Sarkozy and the former United Kingdom foreign secretary David Miliband, among others. Past guests have included another former Fed chairman Paul Volcker
The forum will also touch on subjects close to the heart of NBAD, the UAE’s biggest lender, and the emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Some of the panels will tackle local financial and economic issues as well as the role of the emirate in trade between East and West. The commercial banking market in that niche is valued at US$137 billion and NBAD is planning to capture some of it as part of a bold plan hatched by the recently appointed Mr Thursby.
“We have chosen a select group of experts who will provide balanced and thorough analysis of the world economy with a particular emphasis on the increasing importance and influence of the West-East Corridor, which stretches from West Africa to East Asia,” said Mahmood Al Aradi, the senior managing director and head of global markets at NBAD.
Other panel titles include The State of the World Today featuring Mr Trichet, Alastair Newton, Nomura International’s managing director, and Did We Learn Anything from the 2008 Banking Crisis that will have Bob Diamond, the former chief executive of Barclays Bank, on board.
Mr Bernanke left his post at the Fed on February 2 and was replaced by Janet Yellen, who has continued his monetary stimulus paring that began late last year amid signs of improving economic indicators in the US, the world’s largest economy.
mkassem@thenational.ae
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