2024-04-16 09:40:56
FMI : The global economy relatively more solid
“The global economy is relatively stronger,” said the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva. She stressed that the “resilience of the global economy must encourage countries to put in place the right policies, in particular by combating inflation and debt”. In a preview statement on the eve of the spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank (WB), which begin today, Georgieva welcomed this resilience which, according to her, is the direct cause of “robust activity in the United States and several emerging economies.”
It should be remembered that the IMF is due to publish, also today, the update of its report on the world economy (WEO), with updated growth forecasts for the world economy and the main countries. Relative economic solidity, which is part of a “sluggish and disappointing decade”, with an average medium-term growth of just over 3%, which the head of the Fund nicknames “the Tepid Twenties”, if nothing is wrong. done to “correct the trend”.
In order to achieve this, it is necessary to put in place “the right policies”, in particular by combating “inflation and debt, promoting the transformation of the economy to accelerate productivity, inclusion and sustainable growth” . “The global environment has become more difficult. Geopolitical tensions increase the risks of fragmentation of the global economy,” she warned.
If Georgieva believes that a lot has been achieved on the inflation front, “thanks to the good choices” in terms of monetary policy on the part of “the central bankers”, there is still a long way to go and the latter must “calibrate their decisions in based on available data”, before deciding whether or not to lower rates. At the same time, the Director General of the IMF called on States to “rebuild their budgetary cushions”, largely put to contribution with the succession of crises since 2020. She must end her mandate at the end of September but has been proposed as a candidate for her own succession by European States, being the only candidate proposed by a Member State.
The process of choosing the new head of the IMF, launched in March, is expected to be completed by the end of the month, potentially even during this spring meeting week.
Chine : Foreign trade increased by 5%
In the first quarter of 2024, China’s merchandise imports and exports increased in total volume by 5% year-on-year. These are new records in terms of scale and growth rate.
From January to March, the country’s foreign trade in goods amounted to 10.17 trillion yuan (regarding 1.43 trillion U.S. dollars), according to the General Administration of Customs of China.
Exports in the world’s second-largest economy rose 4.9 percent year-on-year to 5.74 trillion yuan, and imports rose 5 percent to 4.43 trillion yuan, the data showed. Historically, the scale of the country’s foreign trade for the first time exceeded 10 trillion yuan during this period, while the growth rate reached its highest level in six quarters.
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