Historian Dr Peter Frankopan and economist Stephen King debate the changing world order and the rise of economic power in the East and ask what the future holds for the world over the next century or more.

The Brexit vote and the election of Donald Trump in the United States are signs that people are rejecting the globalisation and free trade that have dominated world economics for the last 30 or more years. Meanwhile, economies of the East, along the old Silk Roads, are rising. What does potential break-up of the EU, a greater protectionism in major western economies and the growing economic power of the East mean for us?

Frankopan is author of several acclaimed works of history. His most recent is the international bestselling The Silk Roads: A New History of the World in which he argues that a region that is obscure to many in the West was where civilization began, where religions first took hold and where goods were first exchanged. He says the Silk Roads are on the rise again. Frankopan is director of the University of Oxford’s Centre for Byzantine Research.

King is a senior economic adviser at HSBC and an adviser to the House of Commons treasury committee. In his third book, Grave New World, he explains why globalisation is being rejected and warns that a world ruled by nations with conflicting aims could risk economic and political conflict and result in a race to the bottom. King’s second book, When the Money Runs Out, was chosen as a book of the year by the FT, the Economist and the Times.

Discussions will be chaired by Christopher Davies, chief executive of international at HSBC Bank plc. Davies has served in senior positions at many international HSBC divisions including the USA and China. 

This event is part of a festival series on leadership sponsored by HSBC.