Keith Wade: Where might the next global financial crisis come from?

Imbalances have fallen but risks remain

clock • 5 min read

Imbalances in the global economy are lower now than before the collapse of Lehman Brothers a decade ago but other risks have emerged, says Keith Wade, as he examines the new fault lines that could trigger another crisis

Ten years on from the collapse of Lehman Brothers and the deepening of the global financial crisis, the world seems to be a safer place. Over the past decade there have been significant shifts in the world economy to the extent that the imbalances that could lead to a crisis are less. The risks have not entirely gone away, but they have shifted and are different to those of a decade ago. The global financial crisis had its origins in a savings glut that built up as emerging markets, notably China, developed an excess of saving over investment. Much of the excess capital ended up in the b...

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