e., lopez - gonzalez, j., marceau g. and so, r. ( 2024 ) “ a song of data flows and trust. a quantitative analysis of cross - border data flow regulation ” wto - oecd working paper presented at the bank of italy ’ s g7 roundtable on 3 june 2024. financial stability board ( 2022 ), “ stocktake of international data standards relevant to cross - border payments ”. oecd ( 2023 ), “ key issues in digital trade ”, oecd global forum on trade 2023 ; wto, oecd, unctad, imf ( 2023 ), “ handbook on measuring digital trade ” ( 2nd edition ). borgogno, o. and m. savini zangrandi ( 2024 ), “ chinese data governance and trade policy : from cyber sovereignty to the quest for digital hegemony? ”, journal of contemporary china. rivalries ( including about technology ), and other tensions that show no sign of abating, have all been factors. 10 this trend can touch digital trade. for example, the ongoing joint initiative on e - commerce at the wto, which the us had strongly supported, has now seen retrenchment. 11 i do not need to underline the importance of global digital trade patterns. the economic rise of some countries ( think of india ) has been linked, among other things, to their ability to supply technical and professional services remotely. is this trend going to continue, and how? the topic is not explicitly on today ’ s agenda, but i believe that it will be in the background of many of your discussions. my third and final point concerns artificial intelligence. everybody has seen the near - vertical trend in the use of llms such as chatgpt, as well as the surge in ai - related stock valuations. this is not the place even to start discussing the innumerable social, economic, political, technical and philosophical issues that surround ai. let me just draw your attention to yet another trade - off, which is highlighted by the bubbling, but far from homogeneous, growth in ai regulation. how does one reconcile the protection of privacy, intellectual property and other basic rights ( which appears to require more regulation ) and the promotion of vibrant innovation ( which often appears to require less )? while the legal framework is still evolving, different jurisdictions already seem to be balancing the pros and cons

been recovering strongly, worsened again in december. the high levels reached by the public debt and the budget deficit in 2000 leave little leeway for the use of budgetary policy to boost the economy. the scope for monetary policy support remains limited. gdp growth is likely to remain close to last year's low figure of 1. 6 per cent. measures to safeguard the stability of the banking system and improve the outlook for growth appear necessary and are under study. in the euro area the rate of gdp growth in 2001 is expected to be more than half a percentage point lower than in 2000. the outcome will depend on international cyclical developments. domestic demand is becoming the crucial factor in sustaining growth. the budgetary measures adopted in several countries with a view to reducing the tax burden on a permanent basis are a step in the right direction only if they are accompanied by a curbing of current expenditure and a strengthening of capital expenditure. budgetary balance and debt reduction, where appropriate, must be assured. taking a broader view, an additional stimulus to growth in european countries will come, under appropriate conditions, from the enlargement of the union to include central and eastern europe and some mediterranean countries. over 100 million people would be involved, about one quarter of the area's present population. average per capita income in the twelve candidate countries is very low, approximately 40 per cent of the average for the union. standards of living in these countries vary widely : whereas per capita income is between 20 and 30 per cent of the eu average in bulgaria, romania, latvia and lithuania, it is close to 70 per cent in slovenia and is 80 per cent in cyprus. all the candidate countries made progress during the nineties in bringing down inflation, which fell from the very high values of the beginning of the decade to 12 per cent in 2000. commercial and financial ties with the eu countries have strengthened considerably. in 1999 the exports to the european union of the twelve countries in question accounted for about 70 per cent of their total exports and consisted mostly of labour - intensive manufactures. in the same year net direct investment in these countries, mostly by eu countries, was equal to almost 5 per cent of their gidp. foreign investment has fostered the european union's exports of technologically advanced products and services ; at the same time it has helped the beneficiary countries to modernize their capital stock, introduce new technologies and develop management skills. the entry of these countries into the european union will intensify the flows