The weakening of Chinese manufacturing comes as China earlier this month abruptly relaxed COVID-19 restrictions after years of attempts to stamp out the virus. The country of 1.4 billion is now facing a nationwide outbreak and authorities have stopped publishing a daily tally of COVID-19 infections.

Worries about the state of the global economy are front and center of traders’ minds and will remain so for the foreseeable future, said a top expert.

Many of global economies are expected to slip into a recession in the next few months. While developing economies like India may not see a recession, growth will certainly take a beating and exports will come under pressure. How can we navigate this uncertain environment? What can businesses do and what will the future look like? CNBC-TV18’s Shereen Bhan spoke to Thomas Loren Friedman, Pulitzer Winning Journalist and Columnist at the New York Times, and Uday Kotak, former CII President and MD and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank who are very keen watchers of the world economy.

Brent crude was up by $1.40, or 1.70 percent, to $82.38 a barrel at 1044 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was at $78.98 a barrel, up $1.49, or nearly 2 percent higher. Both contracts were on track to post a second weekly gain.