'Don't be so smug' on Trump tariffs, Stephen Roach warns in Hong Kong

Economist says threat should be taken 'literally' with global economy at tipping point

Economist Stephen Roach is pictured during an earlier visit to Hong Kong in June. © Getty Images

KENJI KAWASE, Nikkei Asia chief business news correspondent

November 15, 2024 20:29 JST

HONG KONG -- Prominent economist Stephen Roach has warned against underestimating U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's campaign promise to slap heavy trade tariffs on China and the rest of the world.

"There is a great conviction that the world economy is in perfect shape right now, but here I tell you that is overly optimistic," Roach, a senior fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center of Yale Law School and a former chairman at Morgan Stanley Asia, told a forum in Hong Kong on Friday.