Michele Ruta is Deputy Chief in the Strategy and Policy Review Department of the International Monetary Fund, where he oversees the work on trade and trade policy. He had previous appointments at the World Bank, the World Trade Organization and the European University Institute, and holds a PhD in economics from Columbia University and an undergraduate degree from the University of Rome “La Sapienza”. Michele’s research focuses on international and regional integration and has been published, among others, in the Journal of International Economics, the Journal of Development Economics and the Journal of the European Economic Association. His books and edited volumes include The Impact of the War in Ukraine on Global Trade and Investment, the Handbook of Deep Trade Agreements and Belt and Road Economics.