The global economy faces a decade of “tepid growth” and “popular discontent” despite avoiding a much-feared recession, the IMF’s managing director Kristalina Georgieva has warned.
“The sobering reality is global activity is weak by historical standards and prospects for growth have been slowing since the global financial crisis,” Georgieva said, explaining that “inflation is not fully defeated, fiscal buffers have been depleted and debt is up, posing a major challenge to public finances in many countries”.
Combating high debt levels would be hard in a year when there is a record number of elections and at a time of heightened anxiety “due to exceptional uncertainty and years of shocks”, she said, adding that geopolitical tensions “increase the risks of fragmentation of the world economy”.