IMF says global economic outlook better than June prediction

In this file photo taken on April 15, 2020, the seal of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington, DC. The global economic outlook is less bleak than projected in June, an IMF spokesman said on September 24, 2020, hinting that the organization's forecasts for growth will be raised next month.(SAUL LOEB / AFP)

"Recent incoming data suggests that the outlook may be somewhat less dire" than projected in the Washington-based crisis lender's World Economic Outlook published in June, spokesman Gerry Rice told reporters, nothing that "parts of the global economy (are) beginning to turn the corner."

As the coronavirus has moved through the world, economists have been forced to constantly revise their forecasts for growth.

The International Monetary Fund is set to update its global outlook on October 13, though Rice did not reveal details about the new projection.

In its June forecast, the fund said world GDP would drop by 4.9 percent and the virus would wipe out $12 trillion over two years,

However China and some other advanced economies performed better than expected in the second quarter of 2020, Rice said, partly due to the easing of lockdown measures after the near total shutdowns earlier in the year.

"We're also seeing signs of global trade slowly beginning to recover," Rice said.

"I would emphasize we are not out of the woods," Rice said, calling the outlook "very challenging" with emerging markets facing a "precarious" situation due to the coronavirus.

Economists also fear that a second wave of infections could damage growth. Governments including Britain and France have reinstituted some restrictions in recent days, although on a much more limited scale than earlier in the year.

Rice said households and businesses in the United States continue to face challenges and signaled that the fund supports more fiscal support for the economy.

Talks on another round of stimulus are deadlocked in Washington weeks before President Donald Trump stands for a second term in the November polls.

In a column earlier this month, IMF leader Kristalina Georgieva and chief economist Gita Gopinath said governments should continue to support workers and businesses since the unprecedented nature of the crisis could give rise to a wave of bankruptcies and job destruction.

"This crisis, however, is far from over," they wrote. "The recovery remains very fragile and uneven across regions and sectors. To ensure that the recovery continues, it is essential that support not be prematurely withdrawn."

They cautioned that, "Though the world has learned to live with the virus, a full recovery is unlikely without a permanent medical solution."