OECD sluggish growth forecast
March 11, 2014
In its latest World Economic Outlook, the OECD reported that emerging nations, which account for over half of the world's economy, had experienced a marked loss of momentum. "If this continues, it's likely to mean that global growth remains only moderate in the near term," the think tank for the world's most developed countries reported.
The organization predicted that the global economy would expand by 3.6 percent this year, up from an estimated 2.7 percent in 2013.
The OECD warned that one-off factors such as the harsh winter weather in North America and the US government shutdown meant that growth for the major advanced economies in the first half of 2014 would be somewhat slower than in the second half of last year.
Praise for Germany
The OECD added, however, that growth in the United States was "relatively well established," in contrast to the EU and Japan, where the agency called for further monetary stimulus.
The agency announced that, despite a pickup of business activities in the EU, the 28-member bloc was lagging behind in the recovery process and making up lost ground at a slower pace than other major economies.
The OECD noted that Germany, as Europe's powerhouse, could expect annualized growth to come in at 3.7 percent for the first quarter of the current year, with the figure to drop to 2.5 percent in the following three months.
hg/mkg (AP, Reuters)