Risks to global growth rising – IMF

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The International Monetary Fund stepped up its warnings Monday on risks to the global economy, especially coming from Europe, as it trimmed its growth forecast for the rest of the year.

Forecasting world growth at 3.5 percent in 2012 and 3.9 percent in 2013, the IMF said the world economy appeared weaker since its assessment just three months ago, and that “downside risks continue to loom large,” especially from inadequate or slow policy reactions in major economies.

“In the past three months, the global recovery, which was not strong to start with, has shown signs of further weakness,” the fund said in its quarterly revision of economic forecasts.

“Financial market and sovereign stress in the euro-area periphery have ratcheted up,” it said, while growth has fallen below expectations in a number of major emerging-market economies.

source: vanguard