IMF sees sharper than anticipated recession in Saudi Arabia – ZAWYA

IMF sees sharper than anticipated recession in Saudi Arabia – ZAWYA

Saudi Arabia's economy will shrink by 6.8% this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday, a sharper decline than the 2.3% contraction estimated in April, as low oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic hit the kingdom hard.In an update of its April World Economic Outlook forecast, the IMF said it now expects a deeper global recession in 2020 and a slower recovery in 2021, as the coronavirus crisis intensifies in many emerging and developing countries.In Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter and the Gulf's largest economy, virus containment measures have crippled nascent sectors of the non-oil economy such as tourism and entertainment, and lower oil prices have slashed state revenues.In an update of its April World Economic Outlook forecast, the IMF said it now expects a deeper global recession in 2020 and a slower recovery in 2021, as the coronavirus crisis intensifies in many emerging and developing countries.DUBAI- Saudi Arabia's economy will shrink by 6.8% this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday, a sharper decline than the 2.3% contraction estimated in April, as low oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic hit the kingdom hard.In Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter and the Gulf's