The rules-based international trade system is in danger, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned Wednesday, amid spiralling debt, heavy tariffs and financial insecurity for emerging nations.

Guterres said too many countries were trapped in a debt crisis, spending more money on servicing creditors than funding health and education.

"Global debt has soared. Poverty and hunger are still with us. The international financial architecture is not providing an adequate safety net for developing countries. And the rules-based trading system is at risk of derailment," Guterres said at the 16th UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva.

Guterres said trade and development were facing a "whirlwind of change", with three-quarters of global growth now coming from the developing world, services trade surging and........

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