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UN's David Boyd flags investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS) as a barrier. With fossil fuel firms using ISDS to block environmental regulations, fears mount over nations ability to drive change. Despite growing calls to regulate climate-related activities, fears of massive compensation payouts under ISDS persist, deterring stronger environmental measures. Boyd urges reform, labeling ISDS a major hurdle in the fight for climate action.

UNCTAD noted how countries aligned geopolitically are trading more with each other while those in disagreement are trading less bilaterally. That divergence among several issues clouding the outlook for next year, the agency said.

The United Nations trade body announced on Monday that global trade is set to contract by 5% in 2023 compared to last year, with a generally bleak outlook...

The value of goods and services trade will reach $30.7 trillion compared with $32.2 trillion in 2022, according to the Geneva-based United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. A $2 trillion, or 8%, slump in merchandise trade is the main reason. Services trade this year will increase by $500 billion, or about 7%, from a year ago, UNCTAD said in a report Monday.

While panelists agreed that the world is still reeling from the shock of covid-19, the impacts of climate change, armed conflicts and geopolitical churning have hit the poor and vulnerable the hardest.