Services trade can unlock full potential of mini multinationals: Lagarde

Services trade can unlock the full potential of "mini multinationals", IMF chief Christine Lagarde has said, underlining that by reducing trade barriers and increasing digitalisation, trade services could become the main driver of the global trade.

Noting that services trade has been growing relatively fast and now accounts for one-fifth of global exports, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Lagarde said that according to some estimates, half of the global trade in services is already driven by digital technology.

That said, this is an area where trade barriers are still extremely highequivalent to tariffs of some 30 to 50 per cent, she said.

"We believe that by reducing these barriers and increasing digitalisation, services could become the main driver of global trade," Lagarde said, in a major policy speech on 'creating a better global trading system' in the US city of Portland.