Economic Warfare in Russia & Ukraine with Lyn Alden - WBD475

Lyn Alden is a macroeconomist and investment strategist. In this
interview, we discuss the economic impacts of the Ukraine Russia
conflict, including the effect of sanctions on Russia, wider
global impacts, and the responses of individuals, companies, and
nations.


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As the Ukraine Russia conflict continues well into the third
week, it is hard to think beyond the wretched humanitarian
impacts. But, it is imperative the serious economic impacts are
analysed, both in terms of the direct and indirect collateral
costs of the physical war, and the unprecedented economic actions
being applied as tools of warfare.


The main issue is that this conflict is occurring at a critical
juncture for the world economy. The Covid pandemic compounded
structural issues in the global economy precipitated a decade
earlier by the global financial crisis. The conflict is having a
detrimental effect on fragile markets, whilst exacerbating
existing supply chain issues leading to further inflationary
pressures.


However, the conflict is also creating new and potentially more
important problems. The world economy since WW2 has been based on
pillars that were thought to be unbreachable. The central pillar
has been the use of the US dollar as a global reserve currency.
As a direct consequence of actions taken in response to the
conflict, this is now open to question.