Davos 2013: western economies are not for us, say developing nations The continuing threat of a break up of the single currency bloc is likely to smoulder in the background of much of the economic discussion. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble are attending, as are Italy's outgoing Prime Minister Mario Monti and Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank. A number of open debates on the euro are scheduled, with Mr Draghi poised to steal the limelight. Discussion is likely to be more upbeat than recently as reforms in Spain, Portugal and Italy begin to take effect. The countries are becoming more competitive, although growth remains dismal. Britain's relationship with Europe will also be a live debate, with David Cameron and George Osborne both due to speak on Thursday. A number of panel discussions will touch on the subject of fixing the West. Incoming Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde and Mr Schaeuble will be reviewing the global economic outlook on Saturday. Before then, economic luminaries such as former Monetary Policy Committee member Adam Posen and Harvard's Ken Rogoff will search for a new "way forward" in economics and "sustainable growth," and former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers will set out a future for capitalism. Two separate debates have been arranged on central bank policy, and whether a new structure will be needed for the new economy. China will be a dominant presence, with a large delegation and several speakers attempting to make sure their ideas are heard. One message likely to be made loud and clear is that the developing world will not be making the same welfare, pension and spending promises as those seen in the West. Tax avoidance and the Libor scandals have fuelled a growing distrust of business, the resolution of which will be a key topic. Unilever chief executive Paul Polman has said that companies now have to demonstrate that they are working for the greater good of society. Panels have been convened on leadership and values as well as "the evolving role of business" and "banks in the real economy." WPP chief executive Sir Martin Sorrell, Standard Chartered boss Peter Sands and Douglas Flint, the HSBC chairman, will be representing the UK. Equality is another persistent theme at Davos. In its recent global risks survey, the WEF identified income disparity as one of the obstacles to sustainable growth and the topic is up for discussion among leading economists. Oxfam claimed at the weekend that the world's richest 100 people earned enough last year to end extreme poverty for the world's poorest people four times over. An "explosion in extreme wealth" was hindering efforts to tackle poverty, it added.