The World Trade Organization (WTO) on Wednesday raised its global trade forecast for this year, amid an easing of measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus in China, which could boost demand in the country.
The WTO expects global trade to grow by 1.7% this year, instead of the 1% it estimated last October.
The growth rate of global trade will be one percentage point slower compared to 2022, and this can be explained by the negative impact of the war in Ukraine and high inflation.
“Of course, a peaceful end to the war in Ukraine and an easing of geopolitical tensions would significantly improve the outlook for the global economy,” said WTO Chief Economist Ralph Osa.
He said the recently revealed problems in the banking sector pose risks, and rapidly rising interest rates could cause further stress in financial markets, also affecting global trade.
At the same time, the WTO predicts that global trade will grow by 3.2% next year.
Also, the organization estimates that the world economy will grow by 2.4% this year, instead of 2.3% as predicted in October, but next year the growth rate will accelerate to 2.6%.
