Cloudy outlook curbs global growth prospects: OECD

OREANDA-NEWS. September 18, 2015. OECD has again trimmed its global economic growth forecasts and said stagnating world trade and deteriorating conditions in financial markets are curbing growth prospects in many of the major emerging economies.

Global GDP growth this year is put at 3pc, against the 3.1pc forecast in June's outlook. Next year's forecast is cut to 3.6pc from a previous 3.8pc.

"The outlook is clouded by important uncertainties", said OECD chief economist Catherine Mann. "Emerging economies have vulnerabilities that could be exposed by rising US interest rates and/or a sharper-than-expected slowdown in China, giving rise to financial and economic turbulence that could also exert a significant drag on advanced economies".

On a regional level, the OECD raised its 2015 US growth forecast to 2.4pc from 2pc in June, but lowered its 2016 US forecast to 2.6pc from a previous 2.8pc. Eurozone growth is seen at 1.6pc this year from a previous 1.5pc, and at 1.9pc next year from a previous 2.1pc.

Japan's growth this year is cut to 0.6pc from 0.7pc, and for 2016 is cut to 1.2pc from 1.4pc. China has been revised down to 6.7pc from a previous 6.8pc for 2015, and to 6.5pc from 6.7pc for 2016. The OECD expects India's economy to grow at 7.2pc this year, from a previous 7.3pc, and at 7.3pc next year from a previous 7.4pc.