IMF warned in the World Economic Outlook that the global economy is in a “synchronized slowdown”. And, thus, global growth forecast for 2019 was downgraded by -0.2% to 3.0%, lowest since global financial crisis. For 2020, growth forecast was also downgraded by -0.1% to 3.4%. IMF said, “growth continues to be weakened by rising trade barriers and increasing geopolitical tensions”. US-China trade tensions alone would “reduce the level of global GDP by 0.8 percent by 2020.”
IMF also warned: “At 3 percent growth, there is no room for policy mistakes and an urgent need for policymakers to support growth. The global trading system needs to be improved, not abandoned. Countries need to work together because multilateralism remains the only solution to tackling major issues, such as risks from climate change, cybersecurity risks, tax avoidance and tax evasion, and the opportunities and challenges of emerging financial technologies.”
