Davos: The week in Davos started with daytime temperatures way below minus ten, (and God knows what in the middle of the night) and the snow under foot was very slippery making every trek to a meeting outside the Convention Centre an interesting exercise in hope of remaining upright. By the end of the week the sun had come out and the pavements were nicely crunchy, giving the delegates’ boots and shoes a satisfactory sense of grip as they moved around more confidently trying to squeeze just a few more bilaterals into their final day.

One of the Davos week’s major themes was the problem of reducing the inequity created by globalisation, and it was startling that no one had a good answer. For example, when the G20 countries called on members to encourage inclusive growth, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble said “If you want to get more inclusive growth, you need more free trade” which has been the position for decades. It was noticeable, that he (like almost anyone else) did not give a specific answer (or even direction) on how to generate the missing inclusivity.

A big part of the problem is that globalisation is a global phenomenon, but the inequality is felt at a national level. This means that any conversation about redistribution of wealth has to happen at the two different levels of the nation state and the global body, and the International Monetary Fund’s managing director Christine Lagarde did mention the need for redistribution in a talk at Davos. But how this can be developed between and within states will be hard to define in a more protectionist and nationalist global scene.

Clear link

Part of the answer is better education and skills training, where it is easier to see how the richer can help the poorer. David Abney, Chairman of American-based UPS, drew a clear link between leaders not doing to communicate the aggregate benefit of open trade and globalisation, and the need to do much more to equip displaced workers with new jobs and 21st-century skills.

The second big theme of this week in Davos was the arrival of China as the self-declared defender of open global trade and transparent adherence to the rule of international law. It was an astonishing moment when Chinese President Xi Jinping used the Davos meeting to attack any plans for unilateral action in an obvious assault on US President-elect Donald Trumps’ more atavistic urges.

We will have to wait some time to see if this will prove to be more rhetoric than fact, but Xi’s speech made very clear that the old days of managing the world by US-led consensus are over. China may back the rule of law, but it will not let a Trump-led US administration guide the international institutions into a new direction designed to favour America. The irony is that China has not paid too much attention to international law when it has sought to increase its geopolitical sphere of influence.

A final thought

Overheard in the Davos shuttle bus: Two young lady delegates uninhibitedly discussed which parties were the most fun and how to get to them.

“I never have the time,” said one. It takes me at least an hour to get my hair dry.”

“No. Totally not.” said the other. “Haven’t you heard of dry shampoo. It is a powder that you rub in and then just shake out. Totally changed my life. I’ll lend you some tonight.”

It is good to know that at least some of us have our priorities sorted out.