A top Chinese official and leaders of several Southeast Asian countries said Wednesday that moves by the US to limit trade and protect American businesses pose a grave threat to the world economy. Uncertainty and destabilizing factors threaten to undermine growth, Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua said at a World Economic Forum meeting in Hanoi, convened as Washington and Beijing have imposed penalty tariffs on tens of billions of dollars’ worth of each other’s products in an escalating trade conflict. Hu, like the others, did not mention President Donald Trump by name but said some countries’ “protectionist and unilateral measures are gravely undermining the rules-based regime, posing a most serious hazard for the world’s economy.” The consensus of speakers at the gathering in Vietnam’s capital, focused on how Southeast Asia will cope with the so-called “Fourth Industrial Revolution” — a shift to automation and artificial intelligence that threaten models for growth based on low-cost export manufacturing — was that opening markets further is the only option for future growth. “History teaches us that self-isolation leads nowhere,” Hu said. “Openness and cooperation are the only correct choice.” The economy of Vietnam has boomed as companies like Honda and Samsung have set up big production bases, making the country a major exporter but also leaving it vulnerable to trade friction. Indonesian President Joko Widodo drew laughs by likening trade wars to “infinity wars” in a reference to this year’s movie “Avengers: Infinity War,” based on Marvel’s comics. “We must prevent the trade wars from becoming the infinity war,” Widodo said. He did not mention Trump by name, but drew hearty laughs and claps when he quipped, “You may be wondering who is Thanos?” in a reference to the movie’s villain. Thanos was not one single person, but “inside all of us,” Widodo said. “It’s the misguided belief that in order for us to succeed, others must surrender. It is the misperception that the rise of some must mean the decline of others,” he said. Singapore’s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, likewise said the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations would work to keep markets and investment open and protect the “rules based” trading system. Published in Daily Times, September 13th 2018.