Meanwhile, China is supplanting the United States as the world’s most dominant superpower, said Moyo. “By 2050, China will be the world leader in innovation.”
While China was already the largest investor in developing market economies, said Moyo, it has also become the largest investor in developed countries like Australia and Canada. China is also the largest foreign lender to many Western powers, including the U.S.
In Denver, Moyo reiterated the six trends she believes will be the most significant factors for global economic growth moving forward: Technological disruption of the labor markets, demographic shifts, income inequality, natural resource scarcity, debt levels and declining productivity.
Not all the news is bad, said Moyo, because it won’t necessarily be reflected in financial markets over the near term.
“There are some silver linings in all this mess,” she said. “I believe that the areas of logistics, food and consumer goods will still have a bid because those are the things that actually sustain us. I’m a bit more concerned about technology. In terms of healthcare and education and the possibility that we can move the social needle, I think there are some long term prospects. In terms of trading, I also think there will be continued support for the stock markets.”
However, she also cautioned that volatility, which has spent much of the last several years near historic lows, will eventually return.