Ukraine conflict has increased uncertainty in the global economy: IMF -

Washington: The uncertainty in the global economy has increased further due to the Ukraine conflict. International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that this uncertainty could slow down the global economy. The IMF will be releasing a report named ‘World Economic Outlook 2022’ in the next few days. This warning becomes significant against this background. Besides, the IMF has warned about the uncertainty and global recession in its blog post. ‘While the intensity of the Ukraine conflict is increasing, the uncertainty in the global economy is augmenting simultaneously. This growing uncertainty is a terrible sign for economic growth. Increasing uncertainty can affect manufacturing. The IMF has expressed a concern that the global economy will take a hit of 0.35%, given the instability created in the first three months. It is also pointed out that uncertainty had increased in the past following the 9/11 attack, the referendum for Brexit in 2016 and the Coronavirus pandemic.

The IMF Chief has pointed out the jolts received by the global economy in his article on the website. Kristalina Georgieva, the Managing Director of the IMF, has warned, ‘Financial future of most countries has become insecure given the Russian attack on Ukraine. At the same time, inflation is acquiring dangerous proportions, and this is the biggest threat posed to the global economy.’

The IMF Chief also noted ‘The fuel and food grain trade on the international level has been severely hit given the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Therefore, there is a possibility of the African and Middle East countries facing food grain shortages on a big scale. There are indications of decline in the economic growth rates of nearly 143 countries.’ Kristalina Georgieva, the Managing Director of the IMF, also warned that there is a fear of the countries getting divided into geopolitical groups given the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

She also pointed to the raging inflation at this time. The IMF chief also warned that the raging inflation is jolting the global economy’s recovery process.

US and Asian stock markets decline following Chinese economic report

Beijing: The lockdowns imposed in the Chinese cities for control of Coronavirus have hit the Chinese economic growth rate. In the first quarter of 2022, the Chinese economy registered a growth rate of 4.8%. This is a big shortfall against the target growth rate of 5.5% set by the ruling Chinese communist party for 2022. Repercussions of this were felt internationally, and stock indices in the United States and Asia declined.