IMF says global economy will make 'soft landing'
The global economy is "poised for a soft landing," an IMF spokesperson said on Thursday, predicting that inflation around the world will continue to subside without causing a damaging recession. Last year proved to be "more resilient than we had expected," International Monetary Fund spokesperson Julie Kozack told a press briefing in Washington ahead of an upcoming update to the fund's economic forecasts. The Fund expects that resilience to continue into 2024. "Our general view on the outlook is we are poised for a soft landing in the global economy," said Kozack. In October, the IMF predicted that global growth would reach 3.0 percent in 2023 – a slight upgrade on forecasts earlier in the year – before ticking down slightly to 2.9 percent in 2024. The IMF's growth projections are low by historical standards, underscoring the challenges faced by the global economy as it continues its recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, which wrought economic damage to many countries around the world. One of the challenges facing the Fund is the uneven pace of recovery from the pandemic, Kozack told reporters. "Low income countries in particular are at risk of falling further behind," she said. "They are having the hardest time recovering from the series of shocks, including the pandemic, the food and oil price shock," she continued, adding that the IMF was focused on how to help the "most vulnerable members of our global community." (AFP)