Middle East And Africa Struggle To Shake Off Economic Effects Of Coronavirus Pandemic

Middle East And Africa Struggle To Shake Off Economic Effects Of Coronavirus Pandemic

Share to Linkedin Ships at the entrance of the Suez Canal, Egypt on March 29, while work continued to free the Ever ... [+] Given container ship which ran aground in the canal on March 23 (Photo: Mahmoud Khaled/Getty Images) The Middle East and Africa are set to be the laggards when it comes to economic growth this year, according to the latest forecasts by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In its World Economic Outlook report, released earlier today, the Washington D. C.-based organisation said the global economy should grow by 6% this year, following a 3. 3% contraction in 2020. Asian economies are set to lead the way, with growth of 8. 6% across the region. The U. S. is also expected to perform strongly, with 6. 4% growth. Latin America and the Caribbean are expected to expand by 4. 6%, while the Euro area will grow by 4. 4%. However, the Middle East and Central Asia region is expected to grow by 3. 7%, while sub-Saharan Africa will post a growth rate of just 3. 4%. Gita Gopinath, director of the IMF's research department, said in a blog post that the IMF was now projecting a stronger recovery