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00:00TO BE HERE IN LUXEMBOURG. THIS MEETING, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BREXIT TRADE AND OF COURSE QUESTION MARKS ABOUT WHAT THE FED WILL DO. JOINING ME TODAY IS PIERRE GRAMEGNA, MINISTER OF FINANCE, GRANDY DUCHY OF LUXEMBOURG, BEFORE WE GET TO THAT, WHAT IS EXPECTED TO BE ACHIEVED AT THIS MEETING. LUXEMBOURG IS THE FIRST TO POST IT, IT IS SIGNIFICANT. PIERRE: IT IS ONE OF THE LARGEST INTERNATIONAL EVENTS WE HAVE ORGANIZED IN LUXEMBOURG. COUNCIL MINISTERS OF THE EU MEET HERE REGULARLY. TODAY WE ARE HOSTING THE AIIB MEETING FOR THE FIRST TIME IN EUROPE, AND WE WERE THE FIRST ONES FROM EUROPE TO JOIN THE AIIB. THE ROLE WE PLAYED AS A SMALL COUNTRY, BELIEVING IN MULTILATERALISM, AND THE AIIB IS A WONDERFUL INITIATIVE THAT WE NEED IN THESE TIMES OF UNCERTAINTY. HASLINDA: INFRASTRUCTURE AND THE CONTEXT OF GROWTH, LOOKING AT GROWTH IN THE EUROZONE, WE HAVE THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION DOWNGRADING GROWTH. WHAT IS THE OUTLOOK LIKE? WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF RISK? PIERRE: THE DOWNGRADE HAS BEEN LIGHT BY 0.1% TO 0.2%. ROSE WILL BE AN AVERAGE OF 0.1% THIS YEAR. NEXT YEAR LUXEMBOURG WILL ENJOY A DOUBLE RATE. ONE SHOULD NOT OVERDO OR OVER EXAGGERATE THIS DOWNGRADE. IT IS LIMITED. WE HAVE LESS GROWTH THAN LAST YEAR. GREATEST THREAT IS ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE. THE TRADE TENSIONS ARE THERE, THE TRADE WAR EVENTUALLY LOOMING. BUT I THINK A MEETING LIKE THIS ONE OF THE AIIB SHOWS WHAT WE NEED IS MORE INTERNATIONAL ORDER, MORE COMMON ACTION. I WOULD SAY FOR THE TIME BEING, WE ARE IN A WAIT-AND-SEE POSITION. ALSO, THE LATEST TRENDS IN TERMS OF GROWTH OF SERVICES IN EUROPE, AND GROWTH, THE PICTURE IS MUCH BETTER. HASLINDA: THE PICTURE, THE MANUFACTURING CYCLE HAS YET TO BOTTOM. PIERRE: TABLE IMPACT THE EXPORTED MACHINES. HERE AGAIN ONE SHOULD BE REASONABLE IN WHAT IS HAPPENING . CLIMATE CHANGE -- THE COMMODITY OF MONETARY POLICY WITH INTEREST RATES THAT ARE BELOW ZERO ON THE ONE HAND. MANY COUNTRIES THAT HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF SPACE ARE USING THAT FISCAL SPACE TO PUSH CONSUMPTION AND PUBLIC INVESTMENT. I THINK WE HAVE ALL THE ELEMENTS IN PLACE IN EUROPE, TO COUNTERBALANCE. THIS IS NOT A RECESSION. HASLINDA: CHRISTINE LAGARDE WILL NOW BE THE NEXT PRESIDENT OF THE ECB. WHO DO YOU THINK IS A GOOD SUCCESSOR FOR HER? PIERRE: THE PERSON IDEALLY THAT WE NEED SHOULD BE SOMEONE THAT HAS A GOOD EXPERIENCE IN CRISIS MANAGEMENT. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE LAST 10 YEARS, WE HAVE HAD A LOT OF CRISIS, THE INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL CRISIS, DIFFICULT TIMES IN THE EURO AREA. WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GET OUT OF THIS CRISIS IN THE EURO, SO I THINK PERSONS WHO HAVE PLAYED A ROLE IN THESE 10 YEARS AND FACED THIS CRISIS ARE THE ONES THAT QUALIFY. HASLINDA: DO YOU SEE A JOINT CANDIDATE FOR THE IMF? PIERRE: PIERRE: I THINK IT WOULD BE THE SMARTEST, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE EURO AREA WOULD AGREE ON ONE CANDIDATE, WHICH WOULD MAKE THINGS EASIER. THE PROCESS IN THE MAKING WOULD HAVE TO BE PATIENT. IN THE COMING DAYS, SOMETHING WILL EMERGE. HASLINDA: THE WORLD IS LOOKING TO THE FED TO SEE WHAT IT WILL DO. WE HEARD JEROME POWELL TALK ABOUT THE GLOBAL SLOWDOWN, BUT STOPPED SHORT OF SAYING HE WILL CUT RATES. HOW MUCH ROOM DO YOU THINK THERE IS TO CUT? PIERRE: IT IS A TRADITION THAT FINANCE MINISTERS DO NOT COMMENT ON POLICIES OF THE FED OR THE CENTRAL BANK. LET'S BE OBJECTIVE HERE. THE RATES IN THE UNITED STATES ARE AT ABOUT 2%, A LOW RATE, BUT FAR HIGHER THAN THE EUROPEAN UNION, AS WE HAVE WITH EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK. THERE IS A BIT OF ROOM FOR A MANEUVER, BUT THE SLOW DOWN THAT IS HAPPENING IN THE UNITED STATES IS A LIMITED SIZE. I THINK THE AMERICAN INTEREST RATE HAS MORE ROOM TO MANEUVER. HASLINDA: THEY ARE RUNNING OUT OF AMMUNITION, CAN THE FED SAVE THE GLOBAL ECONOMY? PIERRE: THE AMERICAN ECONOMY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT IN THE WORLD. HASLINDA: THAT IS A YES? PIERRE: YES, DEFINITELY, WHEN THE AMERICAN ECONOMY IS RUNNING WELL IT WILL NOT ONLY GROW INSIDE, IT WILL ATTRACT A LOT OF INVESTMENT. AND IT WILL IMPORT A LOT OF GOODS. THE BEST ENGINE FOR GROWTH IS INTERNATIONAL TRADE. IF WE LOOK AT THE BEGINNING OF 2018, WHAT WAS DRIVING THE WORLD ECONOMY WAS INTERNATIONAL TRADE.

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Luxembourg Finance Minister on AIIB Meeting, Eurozone Growth, IMF, Fed

Luxembourg Finance Minister Pierre Gramegna discusses the goals of the AIIB meeting, growth in the Eurozone, the global manufacturing cycle, the next IMF chief and Fed policy. He speaks on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Europe” on the sidelines of the AIIB annual meeting in Luxembourg. (Source: Bloomberg)

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