George Magnus

George Magnus is an Economist and Commentator, and Research Associate at the China Centre, Oxford University, and the School of Oriental and African Studies, London.

George was Chief Economist, and then Senior Economic Adviser at UBS Investment Bank. He had a front row seat and a key managerial position for multiple episodes of boom and bust in both advanced economies and emerging markets, including the Great Financial Crisis of 2008. George anticipated it in 2006-2007 with a series of research papers in which he warned of an impending Minsky Moment.

He previously worked as the Chief Economist at SG Warburg, and before that in a senior capacity before ‘Big Bang’ at Laurie Milbank/Chase Securities, and at Bank of America in London and San Francisco.

George gives his insights and observations about the global economy, and in particular, China and demographics. He also considers demographic trends around the world, as well as key issues such as Brexit, and the US and world economy. He is a regular contributor to the Financial Times, Prospect Magazine, BBC TV and radio, and Bloomberg TV.

George’s book, Red Flags: why Xi’s China is in Jeopardy examines China’s contemporary economic and commercial challenges and aspirations to modernity in the light of a governance system that is a throwback to much earlier times in the People’s Republic. He is also the author of The Age of Aging, which investigated the effects of the experience of demographic change on the global economy; and Uprising: will emerging markets shape or shake the world economy? which examined the rise of China and other major emerging markets, and questioned the widely accepted narrative that China was destined to rule the world.