Global GDP growth projected to drop 2.4% in 2020 as coronavirus puts world economy at risk
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) forecast the global growth to decrease by 0.5 percentage point this year as the coronavirus puts world economy at risk.
The organization projected global GDP growth to hit 2.4% in 2020, down from its previous projection of 2.9%.
“On the assumption that the epidemic peaks in China in the first quarter of 2020 and outbreaks in other countries prove mild and contained, global growth could be lowered by around 0.5 percentage point this year relative to that expected in the November 2019 Economic Outlook,” the OECD said in a statement.
The OECD revised the growth forecasts for China, where the outbreak began, with growth slipping below 5% this year, before recovering to 6.4% in 2021 as output returns gradually to the levels projected before the outbreak.
However, the OECD underlined that global growth could drop to 1.5% in 2020 on the assumption of a longer lasting and more intensive coronavirus outbreak, spreading widely throughout the Asia-Pacific region, Europe and North America.
The organization called on governments to ensure effective and well-resourced public health measures, to implement well-targeted policies to support health care systems and workers, and to protect the incomes of vulnerable social groups and businesses.
Supportive macroeconomic policies can help to restore confidence and aid the recovery of demand as virus outbreaks ease, it said.
The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in China exceeded 3,000, according to the country’s National Health Commission.
The coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19, has spread to more than 45 other countries including the U.S., the U.K., Singapore, France, Russia, Spain, and India.