An exterior view of the building of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with the IMG logo, is seen on March 27, 2020 in Washington, DC. AFP / Olivier DOULIERY
Doha: Amid the rapid developments the world is witnessing due to ongoing geopolitical conflicts and the impact of natural disasters and extreme weather events, and despite the technological advancements and AI revolution that bode well for significant changes and novel opportunities, the uncertainty arising from these reactions still leaves an impact on the global economic environment.
As such, these implications have kept the burden of massive costs on the macro-economy ongoing in many countries.
In its latest reports, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has once again raised its global growth forecast for 2026, reflecting the adaptation of companies and economies to lower tariffs in recent months, as well as the ongoing investment boom in AI, which has boosted asset wealth and productivity prospects.
In its World Economic Outlook report, IMF projected global GDP growth of 3.3 percent in 2026, an increase of 0.2 percentage points over its previous estimate in October, matching the same level expected for 2025. Meanwhile, it kept its 2027 growth forecast unchanged at 3.2 percent.
The report attributed the improvement in growth prospects to trade deals that lowered tariffs, the ability of firms to redirect supply chains, and the continuation of AI-related investments.
In this context, and regarding the report’s projections for major economies, the IMF predicted in its annual World Economic Outlook that China’s growth in 2026 is expected to reach 4.5 percent, lower than its outperformance in 2025 at 5 percent, but 0.3 percentage points higher than the October estimate.
Meanwhile, the IMF estimated US economic growth in 2026 at 2.4 percent, an increase of 0.3 percentage points from the October forecast, undergirded by investment in AI infrastructure.
At the same time, the IMF lowered its US 2027 growth forecast by 0.1 percentage points to 2.0 percent, attributing the rebound in Spain’s economy to technology investment and raising its forecast for Spanish GDP growth in 2026 by 0.3 percentage points to 2.3 percent.
