IMF meetings to begin under fresh cloud of US-China trade tensions

THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank's semiannual gathering of finance ministers and central bank governors gets underway in Washington on Monday, against the backdrop of new trade threats from the world's two largest economies.

- AFP

Last week, China unveiled new export restrictions on critical minerals, prompting a fierce response from US President Donald Trump, who said he would impose new 100 percent tariffs on Beijing in response. The news, delivered just after US stock markets closed on Friday, sent shares plunging after hours, as investors digested the prospect of a reinvigorated trade war.

Last week, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva told an event in Washington that the world economy is doing "better than feared, but worse than we need."