At the same time, survey results also show that
for CEOs, trade policies are but one force behind
advances (and at times, retreats) in trade openness.
Those who feel progress has stalled or reversed point
to reasons ranging from signs of rising protectionism
to weak demand in mature markets to the failure
of existing trade agreements to reflect what they
see as pressing business needs or conditions. One
respondent in Hong Kong offered a typical view
among the pessimists: “Free trade was more focused
on merchandise trade. Whereas as data privacy/
sovereignty, FATCA, CRS, AML etc. develops, these
new regulations are making doing business more
difficult as they were often introduced without much
consultation with the business community.”