Trade, Debt Seen as Threats to Global Growth in IMF Communique
- Risks mount even with ‘increasingly broad-based’ expansion
- Reiterates nations will avoid competitive FX devaluations
Shipping containers stand in a terminal in this aerial photograph taken at the Yangshan Deep Water Port in Shanghai.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The global growth outlook faces rising threats from trade tensions and mounting debt despite a strengthening and “increasingly broad-based” expansion at the moment, according to a statement from world finance ministers and central bankers.
“Risks are broadly balanced in the near term, but remain skewed to the downside beyond the next several quarters,” according to a communique by the IMF’s main advisory committee, released Saturday in Washington. “Rising financial vulnerabilities, increasing trade and geopolitical tensions, and historically high global debt threaten global growth prospects.”