Trump Tariff Fears Pushing Global Rates Higher, IMF Chief Says

  • Georgieva sees uncertainty adding to global economic headwinds
  • IMF to update World Economic Outlook forecasts on Jan. 17
Kristalina Georgieva in October.Photographer: Ting Shen/Bloomberg
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US President-elect Donald Trump’s tariff threats are already driving up longer-term borrowing costs around the world, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said.

Uncertainty about the incoming administration’s trade policies is adding to worldwide economic headwinds and “is actually expressed globally through higher long-term interest rates,” Georgieva told reporters in Washington on Friday. That’s happening even as short-term rates have gone down, a “very unusual” combination, she said.