WASHINGTON, DC — The
World Bank slashed its
growth estimate for the global economy to 2.9 percent, 1.2 percentage points
below the January forecast, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine which has
caused a severe downturn.
اضافة اعلان
“The world economy is expected to experience its
sharpest deceleration following an initial recovery from global recession in
more than 80 years,” the bank said Tuesday in its
Global Economic Prospects
report.
The slump comes after growth recovered to 5.7
percent in 2021 following the downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Russia invasion and Western sanctions on Moscow
have sent grain and oil prices soaring, and drivers around the world are facing
eye-popping prices at the pump.
“The war in Ukraine, lockdowns in
China,
supply-chain disruptions, and the risk of stagflation are hammering growth. For
many countries, recession will be hard to avoid,” said World Bank President
David Malpass.
The war is compounding the damage from the COVID-19
pandemic, magnifying the slowdown in the global economy, “which is entering
what could become a protracted period of feeble growth and elevated inflation,”
according to the report.
“This raises the risk of stagflation, with
potentially harmful consequences for middle and low-income economies alike.”
The report notes some similarities to the 1970s when
growth stalled and inflation skyrocketed with supply factors fueling price
hikes and a long period of low interest rates.
But in contrast to that period, the US dollar is
strong, and major financial institutions are in solid position.
The bank warned against trying to resolve the
inflation spike with price controls or export restrictions.
Malpass said it “is urgent to encourage production
and avoid trade restrictions.”
The report cut the
US growth estimate by 1.2 points
to 2.5 percent, and the forecast for China was lowered 0.8 point to an
unusually low 4.3 percent.
Meanwhile the euro area forecast was cut to 2.5
percent, and Japan to 1.7 percent.
Russia’s economy is expected to contract this year
by 11.3 percent.
Read more Region and World
Jordan News
.jpg)
.jpg)
