Risks to economic prospects have increased – IMF

The International Moneatry Fund (IMF) has said the global recovery continues, but momentum has weakened, hobbled by the pandemic.

The IMF added that risks to economic prospects have increased, and policy trade-offs have become more complex.

The fault lines opened up by COVID-19 are looking more persistent—near-term divergences are expected to leave lasting imprints on medium-term performance. Vaccine access and early policy support are the principal drivers of the gaps. 

The global economy is projected to grow 5.9 percent in 2021 and 4.9 percent in 2022, 0.1 percentage point lower for 2021 than in the July forecast.

The downward revision for 2021 reflects a downgrade for advanced economies—in part due to supply disruptions—and for low-income developing countries, largely due to worsening pandemic dynamics.

The global recovery continues, but momentum has weakened, hobbled by the pandemic. Risks to economic prospects have increased, and policy trade-offs have become more complex. https://t.co/j0FIiCr9li #WEO pic.twitter.com/MId3yY022i

— IMF (@IMFNews) November 14, 2021

This is partially offset by stronger near-term prospects among some commodity-exporting emerging market and developing economies. Rapid spread of Delta and the threat of new variants have increased uncertainty about how quickly the pandemic can be overcome.

Policy choices have become more difficult, with limited room to maneuver. 

Source: editors.3news.com|Ghana