The global economy remains on shaky ground a decade after the 2008 financial crisis according to the “Trade and Development Report 2018: Power, Platforms and the Free Trade Delusion,” the flagship report from UNCTAD on the state of the world’s economic system.

The report says that while the global economy has picked up since early 2017, growth remains spasmodic with many countries operating below potential. Meanwhile, trade tensions signal a deeper malaise in the way the global economy works.

The annual report analyses current economic trends and major international policy issues and makes suggestions for addressing them. The 2018 report includes an examination of how economic power is being concentrated in a smaller number of big international firms and the impact this is having on the ability of developing countries to benefit from their participation in the international trading system as well as to gain from new technologies and the digital revolution.